Crushers Pre-Draft Review
Tricia Takanawa, Takanawa Times
6/13/2013: Kawaguchi, Japan – The League of the Rising Sun has many great teams. It also has many not-so-great teams. The Seoul Crushers began the season with a new owner: former GM Mark Kierstead. Kierstead has the team at 11-21 so far this year. Sure, it’s a sad .364 winning percentage while also a horrid 14 games from 1st place in the BBG. Seoul knows what it is to lose and have a losing season, so they began making moves that will not improve the team this year but also long-term. Most owners would agree that you have to have a plan, but when that plan includes getting out of the red for the first time in years, things can be a bit slow. So with Seoul in the red and the draft pool weak, the team has traded most of its picks.
This reporter thinks this was a wise choice. They are already pitcher-heavy in the minors. This now includes Tadamasa “Six Pack” Hashimoto, who was acquired from the Lupin Cliff Hangers back in January. Hashimoto is a great addition to an already stacked Ranma Pandas, but this will most likely change after this year when most of them will go to AAA.
Seoul at this moment has only two picks in the draft: a 1st round and a 5th rounder. You might say, for a team that is rebuilding, why go and trade your picks away? The answer is easy: The talent pool is weak. Not only that; the top 10 scouted players are not positions they need. Seoul is in dire need of infielders. The current pitching staff is in shambles but will be fixed over time. So with the need for infielders, you can see why they would trade their picks. There is no talent in the top 10 at those positions. Is it possible that Seoul might try to trade all its picks and skip the draft this year? It might not be a bad idea.
Seoul does have a few bright spots so far. They have players who are playing up to (and well above) their potential. Players like CF Raúl Gómez, who, in his rookie year, is in most top 10 batting categories. Also in his rookie year is RF Kiyonori Kato, who leads the league in hits so far. He is a leading candidate for BBG Shinjinshou. It is very possible both players will be All-Stars to come – maybe even this year. We even have 35-year-old 3B Jose Escalante playing like he was 25 years old. He is batting over .350 so far this year.
Along with a few bats helping them win games, SP Art Minty is 3-3, one win less than his total last year. The surprise of the season, though, has to be Masahiro Matsumoto. Both he and Minty tossed shutouts in the first few weeks of the season. Matsumoto is 4-3 with a 2.82 ERA. Not bad for someone who for many teams would be bullpen only, or not even on the active roster.
What we learn here is that you don’t have to have the best of the best to win games. You do, though, need quality to win. Seoul is not the worst team in the league, as they were at this point last year. Kierstead thinks this should be a .500 team. Good luck with those dreams. I personally think the team will be slightly below .500. I think they will win more games than last year. With that said, they happen to be on the right track. Good luck to Seoul.
I am Tricia Takanawa, and this is the Takanawa Times.