<h2>He is likely to be off the protected list. &#8230;&#8230;</h2>
 Takuya Kai, 32, a catcher who declared FA from Softbank, has decided to move to the Giants, as most expected. A press conference is expected to be held soon, but fans&#8217; attention has turned to human compensation.
<figure id="attachment_405833" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-405833" style="width: 2040px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="da13041d"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/12/167892be68d3b2cb93d961603f288b18.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-405833" class="wp-caption-text"> Takuya&#8217;s sweet mask is second only to Hayato Sakamoto in merchandise sales.</figcaption></figure>
 Kai&#8217;s estimated salary for this season is 210 million yen. Kai&#8217;s salary is estimated to be 210 million yen this season, which is considered to be the second B rank from the top, and Softbank can ask the Giants for either money or human compensation. SoftBank, which is now the richest team in the 12-team field, is unlikely to choose monetary compensation, so they will probably choose human compensation,&#8221; said a SoftBank alumnus.
 If SoftBank were to choose human compensation, it would be able to select one player other than the protected players chosen by the Giants. One player who might be left in limbo in this situation is Seiji Kobayashi (35).
 There are rumors floating around that SoftBank will pick him (&#8230;&#8230;), but a Central League organizer said, &#8220;The Giants definitely don&#8217;t want to let Kobayashi go.
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 Kobayashi will wear the uniform next season, but it is likely that Kai, Yukinori Kishida (28), and Takuzo Oshiro (31) will be the ones to get through the first-team games, and their chances to play will be drastically reduced. However, the Giants intend to seriously develop Kobayashi as a candidate for the team&#8217;s executive ranks. Therefore, we cannot have him transferred at this point in his career.
 This season, Kobayashi won the Battery Award with Tomoyuki Sugano (35), who has just been selected to join the Orioles of the Major League Baseball, and his reputation as a catcher has skyrocketed again.
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 &#8220;The baseball team has been a small The team is secretly hoping to make use of Hayashi&#8217;s brains in the organization department after he retires. They are planning to have him retire as early as next off-season, and then have him become a coach to learn the philosophy of the emperor, with a view to becoming the team&#8217;s GM.
 However, considering the current situation, there is a big possibility that Kobayashi will be left off the protected list. A Giants alumnus offered the following observation.
 A Giants alumnus said, &#8220;I still think he will be selected by SoftBank. However, SoftBank&#8217;s team chairman Oh Sadaharu (84) is an alumnus of the Giants, so the relationship between the two teams is relatively good. The plan is to leave Kobayashi with SoftBank for a few years to complete his active career, and then return him to the Giants after a few more years of coaching experience. SoftBank is without a second catcher who can lead the relievers with a solid lead at the end of games. I hear that they want Kobayashi&#8217;s ability.
 Will the &#8220;KOBAYASHI of the world&#8221; become the &#8220;KOBAYASHI of Hakata&#8221; or &#8230;&#8230;?

 Kyodo News

 Takuya Kai, 32, the FA catcher from Softbank, has decided to join the Giants, as most expected. A press conference is expected to be held in the near future, but fans' attention has turned to human compensation.

Shocking &#8220;GM training&#8221; plan for Seiji Kobayashi, who is rumored to be Takuya Kai&#8217;s human compensation: &#8220;The Giants definitely don&#8217;t want to let him go.

Shocking “GM training” plan for Seiji Kobayashi, who is rumored to be Takuya Kai’s human compensation: “The Giants definitely don’t want to let him go.

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