Tigers are an unexpected entry into low-key sweepstakes for Japanese pitching prospect

The Tigers have taken slow but sure steps toward becoming players on the international prospect scene. Their $3,197,500 deal with Cris Rodriguez last year set a franchise record for international free agent spending, and there are rumors they're planning to eclipse it with a deal for infielder Luis Rodriguez at $3.8 million in 2029.

However, there's one massive market the Tigers have yet to fully tap into. Japanese baseball is facing something of an existential crisis right now, not because their professionals are leaving to try their hand in MLB, but because their top prospects are, too.

Shohei Ohtani kind of set the precedent when he came over after his age-22 season, with just five years of NPB service time. If he had waited until he was 25, he could've received a deal unrestricted by international bonus pool rules. Roki Sasaki followed suit in 2025.

But high schoolers are starting to leave before their professional careers even begin. High school slugger Rintaro Sasaki went to Stanford instead of NPB, and he was an eighth-round pick for the Marlins this year. Shoki Oda, a high school pitcher, is also looking to make the jump over and has been meeting with a slew of teams over the last week, including the Tigers.

Tigers reportedly met with top Japanese pitching prospect Shoki Oda

Oda is casting a wide net, and the Dodgers are unsurprisingly thought of as the favorites to land him (Oda follows just one MLB team on Instagram, and guess who it is). The Phillies, Mets, Cardinals, Blue Jays, Astros, and Yankees are also involved.

But that clearly hasn't deterred the Tigers from shooting their shot, as it shouldn't. Just like with the (Roki) Sasaki sweepstakes, the player might certainly be coming over with a favorite in mind, but because no one can just throw as much money at him as they want, it opens the arena to new competitors.

Oda, just 18 years old, hit a record 97.6 MPH on his fastball during Japan's storied Summer Koshien tournament this year. He also has a slider, curveball, changeup, splitter and cutter.

The team that manages to get in at the ground floor with Oda has a chance to mold him in a way that the Dodgers couldn't with Sasaki, who has been followed by talk of being resistant to help since he came over, and it would certainly send a message to other Japanese prospects looking to forgo NPB.

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