Draft 2012 Liveblogging!

Moving the "liveblog" to the bottom though I didn't comment THAT much -- just very tired from 1am-4am here, you know :)

I'll add in the ikusei players tomorrow morning.

Name                   Pos  HS/Univ/Company         T/B   DOB          Ht/Wt  
--------------------   ---  ---------------         ---   ----------   -------

Giants
1 Tomoyuki Sugano       P   Tokai University        R/R   10/11/1989   185/86
2 Susumi Ohrui          IF  Dohto Univ              R/R   08/31/1990   176/70
3 Harutomo Tsuji        IF  Komono HS               R/L   08/11/1994   180/80
4 Katsuhiko Kumon       P   Osaka Gas               L/L   03/04/1992   173/75
5 Masaki Sakaguchi      IF  Tokai Univ              R/R   09/29/1990   187/95

I1 Keigo Tahara         P   Yokohama HS             L/L   06/12/1994   182/88
I2 Rin Matsutomi        IF  Beppu Univ              R/R   04/26/1990   172/70

Dragons
1 Koji Fukutani         P   Keio University         R/R   01/09/1991   183/92
2 Tatsuro Hamada        P   Aikodai Meiden HS       L/L   08/04/1994   183/88
3 Takeru Furumoto       OF  Ryukoku Univ            R/L   12/04/1990   175/77
4 Shota Sugiyama        IF  Waseda Univ             R/R   02/10/1991   172/78
5 Hayato Mizowaki       IF  Kyushu Gakuin HS        R/L   05/17/1994   178/63
6 Koshi Inoue           P   City Light Okayama      R/R   08/21/1988   180/78
7 Shunta Wakamatsu      P   Yusei HS                R/R   02/28/1995   180/75      

Swallows
x Shintaro Fujinami 
1 Taichi Ishiyama       P   Yamaha                  R/R   09/01/1988   182/75
2 Yasuhiro Ogawa        P   Soka Univ               R/R   05/16/1990   170/74
3 Kengo Tagawa          P   Kochi Chuo HS           R/L   05/22/1994   187/77
4 Masaya Emura          P   Y-Tec                   L/L   07/05/1987   179/70
5 Yudai Hoshino         C   Kagawa Olive Guyners    R/R   10/19/1988   177/80
6 Ryota Yachi           IF  Kokugakuin Univ         R/R   02/03/1991   178/78
7 Tatsuya Ohba          P   Hitachi Seisakusho      R/R   03/10/1989   183/85

Carp
x Yudai Mori
x Tatsushi Masuda
1 Hiroki Takahashi      OF  Ryuukokudai Heian HS    R/R   05/11/1994   181/77
2 Seiya Suzuki          P   Nishogakusha HS         R/R   08/18/1994   180/80
3 Takashi Uemoto        IF  Meiji Univ              R/R   08/22/1990   170/70
4 Ko Shimozuru          OF  Honda                   R/R   04/23/1988   175/83
5 Yuuki Mima            P   Naruto Uzushio HS       R/R   05/26/1994   176/77

I1 Sora Tsuji           P   Gifu Johoku HS          R/R   04/24/1994   184/77
I2 Tsukasa Morishita    OF  Aikodai (Univ)          L/L   02/23/1991   176/76

Tigers
1 Shintaro Fujinami     P   Osaka Toin HS           R/R   04/12/1994   197/87
2 Fumiya Hojo           IF  Kosei Gakuin HS         R/R   07/29/1994   177/75
3 Kojiro Tanabo         P   JFE Higashinihon        R/R   12/09/1990   177/82
4 Shinya Azuhata        C   Seino Unyu              R/R   07/22/1988   181/85
5 Kazuyuki Kaneda       P   Osaka Gakuin Univ       R/R   09/18/1990   183/77
6 Ryosuke Ogata         OF  Toyo Univ               R/L   08/25/1990   176/75

Baystars
x Nao Higashihama 
1 Hiroyuki Shirasaki    IF  Komazawa University     R/R   08/20/1990   183/87
2 Kazuki Mishima        P   Hosei University        R/S   05/07/1990   176/75
3 Shoichi Inoh          P   NTT Higashinihon        R/R   05/01/1986   188/84
4 Daichi Akahori        OF  Sega Sammy              R/R   04/13/1987   188/90
5 Tateki Abe            P   NTT Nishinihon          R/R   09/03/1986   180/81
6 Toshiro Miyazaki      IF  Sega Sammy              R/R   12/12/1988   175/80

I1 Kinta Imai           P   Hiroshima Kokusai HS    R/R   06/19/1994   178/78

Fighters
1 Shohei Ohtani         P   Hanamaki Higashi HS     R/L   07/05/1994   193/85
2 Tatsuya Morimoto      IF  Takaoka Daiichi HS      R/R   06/12/1994   185/90
3 Yohei Kagiya          P   Chuo University         R/R   09/23/1990   177/80
4 Ruita Usami           IF  Hiroshima Kogyo HS      R/R   10/24/1994   177/82
5 Hayato Aragaki        P   Toshiba                 R/R   10/21/1985   183/84
6 Shogo Yagi            P   JX-ENEOS                R/L   03/29/1989   179/80
7 Hidekazu Kawano       P   Sumikin Hirohata        R/R   12/14/1987   173/75

Lions
x Nao Higashihama 
1 Tatsushi Masuda       P   NTT Nishinihon          R/R   04/23/1988   180/78
2 Makoto Aiuchi         P   Chiba Kokusai HS        R/R   07/23/1994   184/75
3 Yuji Kaneko           IF  Ritsumeikan University  R/S   04/24/1990   178/67
4 Tomomi Takahashi      P   Seino Unyu              L/L   11/16/1988   174/75
5 Isamu Satoh           P   Kohnan HS               L/L   09/18/1994   181/77

I1 Daichi Mizuguchi     IF  Kagawa Olive Guyners    R/L   06/28/1989   168/68

Hawks
1 Nao Higashihama       P   Asia University         R/R   06/20/1990   181/76 
2 Yusuke Itoh           P   Tohoku Gakuin Univ      L/L   10/20/1990   175/70
3 Tomoki Takata         IF  Asia University         R/L   05/06/1990   175/65
4 Yusuke Masago         OF  Nishijojo HS            R/R   05/04/1994   184/78
5 Taiga Kasahara        P   Fukuoka Kodai Joto HS   L/R   01/20/1995   185/77
6 Hirofumi Yamanaka     P   Honda Kumamoto          R/R   09/09/1985   175/78

I1 Takeshi Yagi         C   Gunma Diamond Pegasus   R/R   01/13/1990   184/81
I2 Yusuke Ohtaki        OF  Earth Environmental HS  R/R   04/05/1994   182/75
I3 Yuya Iida            P   Nodai Univ Okhotsk      L/L   11/27/1990   185/86
I4 Hayao Miyazaki       OF  Mie Chukyo Univ         R/L   11/27/1990   176/70

 
Eagles
1 Yudai Mori            P   Higashi Fukuoka HS      L/L   08/19/1994   184/76
2 Takahiro Norimoto     P   Mie Chukyo University   R/L   12/17/1990   178/80
3 Takahito Ohtsuka      P   Kyushu Gakuin HS        L/L   10/13/1994   174/70
4 Takahiro Shimotsuma   C   Sakata Minami HS        R/R   04/15/1994   186/85
5 Hirohito Shimai       OF  Kumamoto Golden Larks   R/R   06/19/1990   174/70
6 Takahiro Kakizawa     P   Kamimura Gakuen HS      R/L   07/30/1994   178/80

I1 Sho Miyagawa         P   Osaka Taiiku Univ       R/R   10/19/1990   184/87

Marines
x Shintaro Fujinami 
1 Takahiro Matsunaga    P   Osaka Gas               L/L   04/16/1988   175/76
2 Hiroya Kawamitsu      P   Kyushu Kyoritsu Univ    L/L   03/04/1991   186/80
3 Tatsuhiro Tamura      C   Kosei HS                R/R   05/13/1994   173/77
4 Shohei Katoh          OF  Jobu Univ               R/S   03/28/1991   183/83

Buffaloes
x Shintaro Fujinami
x Takahiro Matsunaga
1 Takahiro Matsuba      P   Osaka Taiiku Univ       L/L   08/14/1990   180/75 
2 Shunichi Satoh        P   Dohto Univ              R/R   01/08/1991   179/71
3 Torai Fushimi         C   Tokai Univ              R/R   05/12/1990   182/83
4 Kengo Takeda          OF  Jiyuugaoka HS           R/R   04/18/1994   183/73
5 Shota Morimoto        P   Fukui Miracle Elephants R/R   05/25/1992   174/70
6 Ryo Toda              P   JR Higashinihon         R/R   09/04/1988   181/75

I1 Daiki Hara           C   Shinano Grandserows     R/R   06/02/1988   174/76
I2 Hiroki Nishikawa     OF  Fukui Miracle Elephants R/L   08/15/1987   171/68

One more hour until the draft! OMG!

Since I'm not in Japan this year I'll be hoping to catch a justin.tv broadcast of the TV part, and I'll just be watching the picks come in on various news sources such as Nikkan Sports, Sponichi, Sanspo, etc.

Anyway... can't wait to see where everyone ends up!!

1am for me: It's on TV!  Why the hell is Tomoaki Kanemoto there??!  :)

Ok, stuff getting underway.   Seems like the order is CL first and by ranking, after the first round of course, so that's Yokohama -> Orix -> Hanshin -> Lotte -> Hiroshima -> Rakuten -> Yakult -> Softbank -> Chunichi -> Seibu -> Giants -> Fighters.

I'm betting 5 teams go for Fujinami...

AND THE FIRST ROUND PICKS ARE:
Yokohama: Nao Higashihama, Asia University
Orix: Shintaro Fujinami, Osaka Toin HS
Hanshin: Shintaro Fujinami
Lotte: Shintaro Fujinami
Hiroshima: Yudai Mori, Higashi Fukuoka HS
Rakuten: Yudai Mori
Yakult: Shintaro Fujinami
Softbank: Nao Higashihama
Chunichi: Koji Fukutani, Keio University
Seibu: Nao Higashihama
Giants: Tomoyuki Sugano, Tokai University (really a ronin this year)
Fighters: Shohei Ohtani, Hanamaki Higashi HS (sigh)

I'm so happy that Fukutani-kun went in the first round. I doubt I'll see him much with Chunichi but he has a great opportunity there, he's from Aichi, and he's just an awesome smart nice guy and I'm so happy for him!!

Not sure what I think of the Ohtani thing, before anyone asks me. The Fighters do some pretty crazy things in the drafts recently. If they can get him to stay, great, if not, oh well, we do a pretty great job of developing our pitchers anyway. Picking Ohtani and losing him to the MLB is not significantly different than picking Fujinami and losing the lottery for him.

So yeah, 4 for Fujinami, 3 for Higashihama, 2 for Mori... lotteries now:

1:21am: Looks like Nao Higashihama is going to the Softbank Hawks... Sadaharu Oh did the lottery pick for them and actually beat the super-lucky Nabe-Q from Seibu.  wow.

1:25am: and Shintaro Fujinami is going to the Hanshin Tigers?!  WTF :P

1:28am: Yudai Mori, who has the Marinerds Cute Seal of Approval, is going to...  Rakuten apparently.  Wheeee.

Okay, so what are the rest of you guys doing in the first round since you didn't get your first pick?

Yokohama:Hiroyuki Shirasaki, Komazawa University
Orix:Takahiro Matsunaga, Osaka Gas
Lotte:Takahiro Matsunaga
Hiroshima:Tatsushi Masuda, NTT Nishinihon
Yakult: Taichi Ishiyama, Yamaha
Seibu:Tatsushi Masuda

Wow so ANOTHER lottery...

1:36am: Lotte gets Matsunaga.
1:38am:Seibu gets Masuda.

So now it's just down to Orix and Hiroshima to settle out their first round... will someone freaking draft Mishima already?  :)

Orix: Takahiro Matsuba, Osaka Taiiku Univ
Hiroshima: Hiroki Takahashi, Ryuukokudai Heian HS

I guess that's it for the first round, whee.

Okay, here are the ACTUAL first round results:

Yokohama: Hiroyuki Shirasaki, IF, Komazawa University
Orix: Takahiro Matsuba, LHP, Osaka Taiiku Univ
Hanshin: Shintaro Fujinami, RHP, Osaka Toin HS
Lotte: Takahiro Matsunaga, LHP, Osaka Gas
Hiroshima: Hiroki Takahashi, OF, Ryuukokudai Heian HS
Rakuten: Yudai Mori, LHP, Higashi Fukuoka
Yakult: Taichi Ishiyama, RHP, Yamaha
Softbank: Nao Higashihama, RHP, Asia University
Chunichi: Koji Fukutani, RHP, Keio University
Seibu: Tatsushi Masuda, RHP, NTT Nishinihon
Giants: Tomoyuki Sugano, RHP, Tokai University
Fighters: Shohei Ohtani, RHP, Hanamaki Higashi HS

It's now 1:46am so I guess it's time for the next round soon?

OH YAY KAZUKI MISHIMA GOT PICKED BY THE BAYSTARS AS THE FIRST PICK OF THE 2ND ROUND!!!  JUST LIKE KAGAMI 2 YEARS AGO.  Also they can play together again, that'll be so funny if I go to visit both of them!! :)


I think I'm mostly giving up on liveblogging and just going to fill in names as they come in because I'm already getting tired... :(

OH but hey, Yohei Kagiya to the Fighters! AWESOME! That means I will meet him next year for sure :)

Takashi Uemoto to Hiroshima, thank god for that :)

I kinda want to note that I think this is the first NPB draft that has both players born after I graduated high school AND players I have actually been out drinking with. Pretty crazy, huh?

2012 Draft!

Hi everyone.  I AM planning to liveblog the draft this year, just as I have every year since 2006 or so. Yeah, I'm back in the US, but I'm planning to be up until at least 3am my time, which means I can catch the 5pm start of the draft in Japan which is 1am here, and hopefully most of it will be done by the time I crash.

I don't think I'm going to get out a pre-draft photo post this time around, since I've been completely swamped at work since coming back here.

Here are the lists of HS and College boys who are entering the draft:

High School Candidates
College Candidates


There are also several industrial league guys who are expected to go fairly high, like pitchers Motoshi Ohshiro from JX-ENEOS (I don't get this one as he's a little lefty, but at Kamagaya the rumors were high), Tatsushi Masuda from NTT Nishinihon, Takahiro Matsunaga from Osaka Gas, catcher Shinya Azuhata from Seino (which is totally fine with me as he'll open playing time for my Shuhei Ikenaga, heh heh).

I don't have a ton of insight into a lot of the high school players beyond things other sites have already said.  The giant 197-cm Shintaro Fujinami from Osaka Toin will certainly be a contested commodity, and it's unclear whether Shohei Ohtani from Hanamaki Higashi will really go to the MLB or not.  LHP Tatsuro Hamada from Aikodai Meiden seems to be high on several lists, infielder Fumiya Hojo from Kosei has been a big deal these last two years.

The college list is, of course, hard for me to be completely unbiased when talking about.  I could write an entire post about how Kazuki Mishima has grown over these last 4 years at Hosei and how he is the undisputed MVP for them winning the Big 6 championship this semester, but since he's also been my "birthday buddy" these last few years and we always chat and joke together outside Jingu after games, I really, really, really want him to get drafted and have a great and successful career.  I could also talk about how Hiroshi Taki decided NOT to enter the draft this year and go to Toyota instead, and how he managed to finish college with 106 career hits, but... yeah.

And of course I'm also biased when talking about the Keio boys; I knew Koji Fukutani was something special when I first saw him in the rookie tournament his freshman year, and I was lucky enough to talk to him several times during the run where Keio was just crushing everyone.  He's tall, built well, throws fast, throws hard, strikes out a ton of guys, and even better, he got into Keio on the actual entrance exam and THEN excelled in sports (AND is an engineering major, the only active baseball club member to do so).  I doubt Daisuke or Agata will get drafted, but they have still had respectable careers as well.

I doubt any of the Rikkio boys will get drafted. Shota Sugiyama from Waseda will probly get taken but I see his upside as Shinichi Takeuchi and his downside as out of baseball in 3-4 years. I guess we'll see. And Meiji's Takashi Uemoto better get drafted, I'm not sure he'll graduate :) He's a really fun guy and his brother plays for Hanshin, but he's never really had a spectacular season at bat during college so it's a little bit worrisome.

In the Tohto league I've become a Chuo fan over the last year or two, and I've grown increasingly fond of Yohei Kagiya.  He may not blow anyone away with his height or power, since he is neither tall nor overpowering, but he throws strikes consistently enough and attacks batters in the zone, which is more than I can say for a lot of other pitchers; I charted him a few times over the last year and he throws a lot more first-pitch strikes than many other college pitchers in Japan.  Nao Higashihama from Asia-dai has been a #1 draft pick since he entered college, pretty much, so it won't be too surprising to see him go somewhere fast.  Hiroyuki Shirasaki from Komazawa, I was surprised to see him on so many lists but watching him in Japan this year, he's a tall boy and he really has filled out a lot as a cleanup batter.  Tomoki Takata from Asia-dai is also a solid shortstop (and he threw me a ball at the US-Japan games, so he gets my vote).

Players in other leagues that I have some interest in include Torai Fushimi, the adorable catcher from Tokai University, who is also pretty solid and was chosen to Japan's national team as a sophomore (though he ducked out on going to North Carolina last summer because he had a bad spring semester).  And Ritsumeikan's switch-hitting shortstop Yuji Kaneko should hopefully get drafted as well, I was pretty impressed with him last summer as well.

Anyway, I'll see you all back here in about 24 hours!  Exciting!  God help me if any of the boys I've fallen for these last 4 years end up with teams I hate, by which I mostly mean Yomiuri...