FUKUOKA (Kyodo) Daiei Hawks infielder Tadahito Iguchi, who is hoping to move to the major leagues next season, will be turned loose by the Pacific League club for unconditional release, team sources said Wednesday.
Iguchi had been in talks with Daiei about a possible switch to the majors through the so-called posting system but, after talks failed, opted for release to increase his possible choices of selecting a major league team.
Nakamura eyes majors
OSAKA (Kyodo) Kintetsu Buffaloes infielder Norihiro Nakamura said Wednesday he will make his second attempt to move to the major leagues, this time through the so-called posting system.
Nakamura, who walked away from a free-agent deal with the New York Mets in 2002, would become the fourth Japanese player to use the bidding system after Ichiro Suzuki (Seattle Mariners), Kazuhisa Ishii (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Akinori Otsuka (San Diego Padres).
"I wanted to make a champion out of Kintetsu but that is impossible now (with the merger with the Orix BlueWave). The deciding factor for me was the merger," said Nakamura, who must now wait for a bid from a major league club.
Players set for trade
NAGOYA (Kyodo) Chunichi Dragons southpaw Shigetoshi Yamakita will be traded to the Lotte Marines for catcher Masaumi Shimizu in a one-for-one exchange.
Yamakita will be a welcome addition to the Lotte pitching staff which has a dearth of lefties, while Shimizu will be expected to play an instrumental role as backup for catcher Motonobu Tanishige.