On December 7th, the Yomiuri Giants formally posted ace Tomoyuki Sugano for Major League clubs. Teams will be able to contact Sugano until January 7th.
The 31 year old right hander is one of the more dominant pitchers in Japan, posting a career 2.34 ERA in 1000+ innings pitched throughout his 8 seasons in the Nippon Professional Baseball League. The two time Sawamura Award winner, which is the NPB equivalent to the Cy Young Award, is viewed as a top pitcher this offseason behind 2020 NL Cy Young winner Trevor Bauer.
With a fastball in the mid to low 90s and a high spin rate slider, Sugano may be familiar to some baseball fans after his strong showing against Team USA in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. Sugano, who went 6 innings allowing an unearned run, one walk and struck out six against team USA, received high praise from USA manager Jim Leyland. Leyland credited Sugano for his ability to spot his fastball and throw his slider in any count.
After posting a 3.89 ERA in 2019, an “off” year by his standards, Sugano bounced back in 2020 going 14-2 while posting a 1.97 ERA in 137 and a third innings. He has already been connected to teams like the Mets, Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Rangers, who are all looking to help their starting rotations. Sugano is exempt from the international bonus pool and can sign any long or short term deal that may come his way. A projected middle of the rotation starter, it's unclear if he will get the full attention of all the clubs that need pitching help, but his consistency and dominance in the NPB may soon help him get a shot in the MLB.
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