Seibu Lions right-hander Fumiya Nishiguchi, who spent most of last season on the disabled list with an injured leg, will start spring training on the club's farm team, officials of the Pacific League team said Wednesday.
Nishiguchi, who was scheduled to take part in a training camp in Miyazaki in a buildup to the regular season, told the team he wished to train on the minor league team instead at Seibu Dome in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, and received permission to do so.
Nishiguchi received a 46 million yen pay cut in signing for an annual salary of 184 million yen after posting a 6-3 record with a 6.84 ERA in 14 starts in 2003.