Shinnosuke Ogasawara Talks Admiration for Daisuke Matsuzaka and Potential Transfer Destinations

Teams that are interested in acquiring Ogasawara.

Ogasawara, who is just one step away from the Major League Baseball world that Matsuzaka, the first pitcher to use the posting system to move to the majors, experienced, still faces challenges. However, reports suggest that Major League scouts do not have particularly high evaluations of him, and many opinions are cautious. The question remains: will his move to the majors become a reality? Sports writer Nachi Tomonari analyzes, “There are teams that would be a good fit for Ogasawara.”

“This year, the performances of Shota Imanaga (31) with the Chicago Cubs and Yusei Kikuchi (33) after moving to the Houston Astros have greatly raised the evaluation of Japanese left-handed pitchers. Ogasawara is still young at 27, and he has a smooth, clean pitching form. His mental toughness is also believed to be solid. Although he recorded five wins this year, his ERA of 3.12 is an impressive figure. There will likely be several teams looking for him as a fifth starter.”

So, which team would be the best match for him?

“The New York Mets. They advanced to the League Championship Series this season, ultimately losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but team executives are not giving up on their chances of becoming World Champions next year if they fill the missing pieces. Even if he cannot start, they may consider using him in long relief. It’s uncertain whether they can offer him a long-term contract, but there is a possibility they could acquire both Ogasawara and Tomoyuki Sugano (35) of the Yomiuri Giants, who has expressed his intention to use his overseas free agent rights to move to the majors. If both perform well for the team next year, it would be a great result for the Mets.”

If Ogasawara were to win the World Series in his first year, he would be following the exact same path as his idol, Matsuzaka. For now, we can only wait for good news.