The Dodgers have already gotten in the room with one of Japan’s most intriguing young arms.
According to Chunichi Sports’ Taro Abe, Los Angeles met with Japanese high school standout Shoki Oda on Saturday in Japan. Oda is an unusual case because he is trying to skip NPB entirely and head straight to the United States to join an MLB organization. His manager said he is speaking with 12 MLB teams, the Dodgers among them.
“Amidst his declaration to challenge the American baseball world without going through NPB, Shohei Oda, the Yokohama High School pitcher who was selected first overall by the Yomiuri Giants in the draft, met with the Dodgers on [Saturday] at his school’s grounds in Yokohama,” Abe wrote.
Oda’s profile explains why so many teams are interested. The Yomiuri Giants took him with the No. 1 pick in the most recent NPB draft, and his high school numbers are eye-catching even by elite-prospect standards.
At Koshien, Japan’s annual national high school tournament, he nearly reached triple digits with his fastball. He also piled up 395 strikeouts in 303.2 innings.
Dodgers vice president Galen Carr didn’t hide the organization’s admiration.
“I believe there is no doubt that he is the best pitcher in the world at the age of 18,” Carr said. “He has many options. Whatever decision he makes, we want to respect it.”
There are signs Oda has a real interest in Los Angeles. His favorite MLB player is Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and the Dodgers are the only team he follows on Instagram.
That fits with comments from Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman earlier in the offseason, when he said the club would keep evaluating talent overseas.
“Obviously we are a big fan of the NPB and have a lot of respect for the talent in that league,” Friedman said. “And it’s something we follow closely and watch.
Our understanding is there’s a chance there’s a couple of very talented players that are going to potentially come over to the major leagues. And we’re going to continue to meet on that and talk about it.
… We’re excited about having those conversations and watching these guys play out.”
A potential lockout could complicate Oda’s path, but the pitcher has said he could attend college in the United States if he doesn’t land with an MLB team.
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