The Boston Red Sox have invited Japanese pitcher Hideyoshi Otake to minor-league spring training, according to WEEI.com’s Alex Speier.
Otake is the second Japanese pitcher to sign with the Red Sox this offseason, as Boston also inked Shunsuke Watanabe to a minor-league contract back in December. Otake spent last season pitching for the Toyama Thunderbirds of Japan’s independent Baseball Challenge League, where he recorded 17 saves and posted a 2.23 ERA in 44 1/3 innings over 46 appearances.
Otake is listed at 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds. The 25-year-old right-hander throws a 94-mph fastball and is considered by Japanese talent evaluators to be one of the best pitchers in the Baseball Challenge League, according to Joon Lee of MLBDailyDish.com.
Lee reports that Otake was among the players who attended a recent tryout that the Red Sox held in Japan.
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