Masahiro Tanaka could follow in the footsteps of Yu Darvish and Co. and become the next Japanese pitcher to join Major League Baseball via the posting system. Perhaps anticipating such a move this winter, some MLB teams are doing their homework on the right-hander.
The Japanese media outlet Sanspo reports that the Red Sox, Yankees and Diamondbacks had scouts in attendance for Tanaka’s most recent start, according to Baseball America’s Ben Badler. All three teams reportedly had scouts in attendance for another one of Tanaka’s recent starts, as well.
The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo reported back in May that the Red Sox were among the teams closely watching Tanaka, and it appears as though — based on these new reports — Boston has kept a watchful eye on the 24-year-old.
Tanaka, who is currently pitching for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of the Japan Pacific League, is 20-0 with a 1.24 ERA and 0.93 WHIP in 23 starts this season. The righty is 95-35 with a 2.32 ERA in 170 appearances (168 starts) over the course of seven seasons in the JPPL.
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