The news has been fairly plentiful in the past couple of weeks while I have been taking an extended break from the updates. We’ll stick to the basics here. First and foremost, the Tigers have decided not to renew the contracts of two foreigners: outfielder Jerry Sands and reliever Jon Edwards. Both joined the team in 2020 and hail from America. They are also both around the same age (Sands is 34, Edwards will be 34 next month) and neither is likely to get signed by another NPB team. It has been rumored that Sands may end up back in Korea, where he played several seasons before joining the Tigers. Both will be missed by teammates and fans. Though Edwards never got much of a chance on the top squad, he was quite well-liked and respected by the farm players and staff. Sands was seen as a true teacher of the game, giving all kinds of advice and encouragement to the younger players, particularly rookie Teruaki Sato.
All-star closer Robert Suarez got what he hoped for, signing on with a major-league team just before the lockout. He will be a member of the San Diego Padres alongside former Hanshin Tiger Pierce Johnson, plus Japanese ace Yu Darvish. His one-year deal, reportedly worth $7 million US, also comes with a player option for 2023. We will miss him sorely but wish him nothing but the best in his new endeavor.
Catcher Ryutaro Umeno earned the right to declare himself a free agent and shop his services to other NPB teams this offseason. He also ended the year sitting on the bench for most of the team’s final 20 games. It appeared that manager Akihiro Yano preferred the work of Seishiro Sakamoto and that perhaps Umeno’s time with the Tigers was over. Rumors flew around that he may end up with the Yomiuri Giants of all teams, which would have crushed Tigers fans more than anything. And so everyone breathed a deep sigh of relief (except perhaps Sakamoto) when Umeno declared that he would not exercise his free agent rights and would remain a Hanshin Tiger for the next three years or more. The 30-year old won three straight Golden Glove Awards (2018-20) but underperformed in 2021 – at least by his own standards.
Finally, the club welcomes a new import pitcher, Aaron Wilkerson, to the roster. Wilkerson hails from Fort Worth, Texas, stands 191 cm (6’3″) tall and weighs 95 kg (209 lbs). He is said to have a strong fastball and good control, and had a strong K/9 last season in AAA. His one-year contract is said to be worth $650,000 (¥72 million) and he will wear #52 – Sands’ number. His comment upon finalizing the deal was: “I am really excited to start this new baseball life with the Hanshin Tigers. I am thankful to the team for giving me this opportunity. I’m really looking forward to meeting my new teammates, the manager and coaching staff, and I hope to contribute to the team winning a championship next year. I’m excited to meet all of you Tigers fans next year when I get to Japan!”
For the record, Wilkerson has one career major-league home run, which you can see in this video:
Welcome aboard, Aaron! H-TEN’s coverage of Wilkerson, plus any other import signings and releases, continues as the offseason drags on. Hurry up and be February already!!!