Seibu’s Yamakawa Obtaining FA rights and His Reason Possible Moving to Softbank

Many Seibu fans may have started the new year feeling restless.

The outflow of mainstays has not stopped in recent years, with Eito Asamura, Shogo Akiyama, and Tomoya Mori all leaving the team. In addition, there has been a lot of speculation about the departure of mainstay gunner Hotaka Yamakawa (31), who is expected to acquire FA rights by the end of 2011. One of the most controversial issues was Yamakawa’s words and actions after his contract was renewed at the end of 2010. Despite being offered a multi-year contract by the team, which was said to be for four years, he chose to stay for a single year. He explained the reason for his decision to the press.

“I thought I would quit if I couldn’t make it this year,” he said. I was putting that much pressure on myself. （This is my 10th year as a pro), and I thought it would be better to make it a single year so that I could spend my whole baseball career on it.”

Indeed, Yamakawa’s batting average in 2020 and 2021 was in the low 20% range and he hit 24 home runs in both years. He was probably not good enough as a mainstay. On the other hand, in 2022, he won the first double crown with 41 home runs and 90 runs batted in. He is an indispensable asset for Seibu, and it is understandable that they asked him to sign a multi-year contract.

Yamakawa’s determination for the next 23 years must be genuine. However, considering the circumstances of acquiring FA rights, it is not surprising that he chose to sign a single-year contract with a view to transferring. Seibu has been away from the top of Japan since 2008. Yamakawa is a player with strong upward mobility. He may be thinking that he wants to play for a team that can always aim for the championship.

A great friend who moves Yamakawa’s heart…

The rumored destination for Yamakawa is Softbank, which has won the Japanese championship seven times since 2010.

Yamakawa’s big move is the acquisition of Hiroki Minei from DeNA. Minei’s main job is as a catcher, but he is not a priority for Softbank. Softbank has an absolute regular in Takuya Kai, and young players such as Takashi Unno are developing.

Nevertheless, it is said that the decision to bring in Minei was a prelude to the acquisition of Yamakawa. Yamakawa and Minei are from the same prefecture of Okinawa and were classmates. They played together in Japan-U.S. Collegiate Baseball and are well known for their close friendship. Yamakawa calls Minei “the best guy in the world,” and they even go out to eat together frequently. They are close friends. Minei must be a big part of Yamakawa’s plans to acquire FA rights.

There are many other players at SoftBank with whom Yamakawa has been in close contact, including Richard Sunagawa, with whom he has been training, and Gyo Higashihama, who is also from Okinawa Prefecture. There is no doubt that Yamakawa feels at home with the team.

Softbank acquired Kensuke Kondo from Nippon Ham in the off-season of 2010, and it is said to be a very large contract with a total value of 5 billion yen over 7 years. They also signed Minei to a four-year contract worth 300 million yen. These huge contracts can be thought of as an appeal to Yamakawa. If you come to us, we will prepare even better conditions for you. For Softbank, a strong right-handed hitter like Yamakawa is a must-have.

SoftBank has overwhelming financial resources and a team that can always aim for the championship. With his best friend joining the team, the reality of Yamakawa moving to SoftBank is becoming more and more plausible.