Former Seibu Lions Tatsuya Ozeki will have a tryout with the Yomiuri Giants in Kawasaki on Friday and Saturday this week, baseball sources said Thursday.
Ozeki was released by the Lions after the 2005 season, when he struggled to a .198 batting average with no homers and one RBI in 47 games and hoped to join the Milwaukee Brewers on a minor league deal this season but decided to abandon his challenge after learning that there are no vacancies available for foreign players.
The 29-year-old joined the Lions in 1995 as their second-round draft pick and was named the Pacific League Rookie of the Year in 1998. His best season came in 2002 when he hit .314 with four homers, 50 RBIs and 153 hits in 135 games.
"We want to deal with him in the appropriate manner as he is one of the players who helped to build a certain generation for Seibu," said Yomiuri manager Tatsunori Hara.