The league's championship is a real winner, and all-out effort to recruit a special bower for the Cy Young Award, preparing an annual salary of 9.2 billion won in Yokohama (Min Chang-ki's Japanese baseball)

Dec 24, 2024

Bauer, which Yokohama is seeking to recruit. He threw in the Mexican league this season and waited for a Major League call, but failed. Photo capture = Yokohama BayStars SNS

The third-place team in the Central League jumped to the Japan Series, beating the second and first place. He won four consecutive games after giving up the first and second games against the team with the strongest power. It produced an unrealistic subpar drama. He won the Japan Series trophy for the first time in 26 years. The third-place team burst champagne for the first time in 14 years since the 2010 Chiba Lotte Marines.

Yokohama BayStars, Fall 2024. The energy of the whole universe seemed to have gathered. It overpowered the Hanshin Tigers and the Yomiuri Giants one after another, and collapsed the Pacific League winner, the Softbank Hawks. Left-hander Shota Imana made a brilliant achievement even though Shota Imana entered the Major League and there was a gap.

It was at the top of the Japan Series, but it was an unfinished victory. A complete victory is achieved only when the league wins and Japan Series wins are achieved at the same time. That was the case with Yakult Swallows in 2021, Orix Buffaloes in 2022, and Hanshin in 2023. Yomiuri, the No. 1 player in the Central League, and Softbank, the No. 1 player in the Pacific League, recently traveled side by side to Hawaii, the U.S. It gives great meaning to his performance in 143 games in a season. Yokohama's primary goal next season is No. 1 in the Central League.

Yokohama has started recruiting Trevor Bauer (33), a right-hander special. Recently, two first-place rookie pitchers left the team after a trade and active draft. The mound needs to be reinforced.

Bauer is the winner of the Major League Cy Young Award. He joined Yokohama at the beginning of the 2023 season and made a strong impact. Unlike Japanese pitchers, he started every five days in a Major League style. He won 10 games (4 losses) and posted a 2.76 ERA in 19 games. He gave strength to Yokohama's mound with strong pitching and strong competitive spirit. He was injured while handling a ground ball in the match against Hanshin in late August and failed to throw until the end of the season. When an infield defense error came out, he reprimanded and encouraged his teammate. It was an unfamiliar scene in Japanese professional baseball.

Yokohama asked to stay, but returned to the United States. The Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) was a stopover for the major leagues. He sought a return to the major leagues. I asked for an opportunity because I don't care about the amount of annual salary, but the privacy issue was hampered again.

Bauer, once the top pitcher in the Major League, joined Yokohama early last season and made a strong impact. He pitched in 19 games and won 10 games. Photo capture = Yokohama BayStars SNS

while catching a ground ball against Hanshin in late August last year

Photo capture=Yokohama BayStars SNS

Bauer chose the Mexican league instead of returning to Japan. While throwing in the Mexican league, he waited for calls from major league clubs. However, he was not called to the end. He has 10 wins, no losses and a 2.48 ERA in the Mexican league this season. It boasted an overwhelming ball power. He ranked first in this category with 120 strikeouts. I won the best pitcher award. In April, he struck out nine consecutive batters. He recorded 19 strikeouts in one game.

Returning to the Major League is still the top priority. If it goes to Japan, it is highly likely to become Yokohama. He said last November that `If you go to Japan, Yokohama comes first.' It was until November. In addition to Yokohama, several Japanese clubs are watching Bauer.

Yokohama has sought to recruit Raidel Martinez. He is a special closing pitcher from Cuba who was released as an FA from the Chunichi Dragons. It has prepared an annual salary of 1 billion yen (about 920 million won). Martinez went to Yomiuri. It signed a four-year contract worth 4.8 billion yen (44.35 billion won). Japanese media reported that Yokohama prepared 1 billion yen for Martinez's recruitment of

Yokohama plans to invest 1 billion yen in recruiting Bauer. This is the money prepared to recruit Ridel Martinez, a special finish. Photo capture = Yokohama BayStars SNS

He said he will put it into recruitment. Bauer received an annual salary of 300 million yen in Yokohama last year. It has more than tripled in a year.

huelva@sportschosun.com