The St. Louis Cardinals are in the mix for one of the most intriguing young arms on the market, with reports linking them to 18-year-old Japanese pitching prospect Shoki Oda.
Francys Romero of Beisbolfr.com reported Friday that St. Louis is among the clubs expected to meet with Oda after he passed on the NPB Draft and instead chose to pursue a path to Major League Baseball.
Romero wrote, "Japanese 18-year-old pitching prospect Shoki Oda and his camp met with MLB teams yesterday, including the [Philadelphia Phillies] and [New York Mets]," and added, "He is expected to meet with the Cardinals, [Toronto Blue Jays], [Houston Astros], [New York Yankees] and others in the coming hours. Oda would be eligible to sign on Jan. 15, 2027, if the international signing period is not canceled."
Oda already has a fastball that turns heads. Per MLB.com’s Michael Clair and Ayako Oikawa, he has reached 97.6 miles per hour, which set a tournament record at the Summer Koshien. At 6-foot-1 and still only 18, he has the kind of frame that suggests there may be more velocity coming as he continues to mature.
He pitched for Yokohama High School and was projected to go in the first round of the NPB Draft before deciding to chase a professional career in the United States instead.
What happens next depends on the labor situation in MLB. As Romero noted, Oda can sign in January unless a possible lockout interrupts the international signing process.
For St. Louis, the interest fits a familiar pattern.
The Cardinals have added plenty of high-end pitching talent to the pipeline in recent years, including Liam Doyle, Tanner Franklin, Brandon Clarke, Jurrangelo Cijntje and Yhoiker Fajardo, among others. Oda would slide right into that group as another premium arm with real upside.
Romero also listed the Phillies, Mets, Blue Jays, Astros and Yankees among the teams expected to meet with Oda, underscoring just how much attention the teenager is drawing. And while the Cardinals may not have been a contender in 2026, they can point to a farm system that is among the best in the league and a future that looks bright. Chaim Bloom has built strong farm and development systems throughout his career, and if Oda were to land in that environment, he’d have a clear path to climb toward the majors.
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