Former Yakult Swallows ace Masato Yoshii, who was waived by the Colorado Rockies last month, is close to concluding a deal with the Montreal Expos of the National League, informed sources said Thursday.
Yoshii had been practicing with the Expos organization in Florida and had planned to practice also with the Cleveland Indians and Toronto Blue Jays.
With the conclusion of a deal with the Expos at hand, Yoshii has reportedly canceled plans to practice with the Cleveland and Toronto squads.
Yoshii's agent Dan Nomura said the two sides were close to reaching an agreement. The deal would make Yoshii a teammate in Montreal with Hideki Irabu.
Yoshii was traded by the New York Mets in January 2000 to Colorado but, plagued with pain in his right elbow, could only manage a 6-15 record and a 5.86 earned run average last season.
The 35-year-old right-hander from Wakayama Prefecture underwent surgery on his elbow during the off-season in an effort to effect a comeback, but struggled in the preseason with an ERA over 10 before being released by the Rockies.