The Book on Junichi Tazawa

Prospect Info

Junichi Tazawa
Born 6/6/1986
RHP, BOS

Japan's best amateur pitcher, 22-year old Junichi Tazawa met with four big league teams this spring, and the Red Sox were first in line with a big check, not to mention first in Tazawa's heart. He is the first premium amateur to skip Japanese baseball altogether.

Tazawa is a compact righthander whose claim to fame is a highly-effective 93mph fastball: early reports often listed it as 96, but US scouts have not yet seen such heat. What they have seen, though, is good fastball control with late tailing action, coupled with a plus slider in the mid-80's. His taste of the big leagues in 2009 wasn't exactly highlight-reel stuff, but he's still very young, and another season or two of minor league ball (perhaps with the occasional visit to Beantown) should help him get a handle on his own natural ability.

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Player Updates and Notes

As widely feared, Junichi Tazawa will require Tommy John surgery and will miss the entirety of 2010, according to the Boston Globe. Once seen as a great young hope, Tazawa stumbled in his brief MLB time, and will now be rehabbing well into 2011, which means he'll be nearing 26 years old before he gets another taste of any opportunity in Major League Baseball.

4/2/2010 by BallGrrrl

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Junichi Tazawa, still suffering from elbow soreness, is scheduled to Dr. James Andrews today. The young pitcher is not yet blessed with a surgically-replaced ligament, but Red Sox Nation has to be wondering if it will come to that.

3/29/2010 by BallGrrrl

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