The Nippon Ham Fighters selected 18-year old pitching phenom Shohei Otani in the Nippon Professional Baseball Draft. Otani had been in the sights of several MLB teams—including the Red Sox and Empire—but now they'll have to wait until at least April of 2013 to start the bidding. Otani, a high-schooler, can throw in excess of 100 MPH. The Hanshin Tigers selected another young pitcher,
Shintaro Fujinami, who some say is even better than Otani. Bobby Valentine—who managed the Chiba Lotte Marines—could not be reached for comment.
