Posting system

The posting system is a baseball player transfer system currently in effect between Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and the United States' Major League Baseball (MLB). NPB players have never been eligible to be obtained through the traditional means of the Rule 4 Draft, and since there were no set legal rules in place to govern the process, problems arose. The system was implemented for two reasons. First, the NPB players Hideo Nomo and Alfonso Soriano used loopholes to void contracts and leave for the MLB - possibly taking fans with them. Second, NPB player Hideki Irabu had very little negotiating power when it came to his trade deal between NPB and MLB teams. By creating a system that requires MLB teams to pay NPB teams transfer fees while allowing players the power to negotiate their own trade deals, the posting system presumably was meant to solve both problems.

As of 2008, twelve Japanese players have been "posted" using the system. Of these, seven were immediately signed to Major League contracts, three were signed to minor league contracts and two were unsuccessful in drawing any MLB interest. The two highest-profile players that have been acquired through the posting system are Ichiro Suzuki and Daisuke Matsuzaka. Respectively, they attracted high bids of $13.125 million and $51.1 million and have enjoyed highly successful careers in the MLB. [cite web |url=http://www.thesportstruth.com/2006/11/daisuke-matsuzaka-bostons-511-million-man-and-counting.html |title=Daisuke Matsuzaka: Boston’s $51.1 Million Man (and Counting) |accessdate=2008-04-14 |work=The Sports Truth |date=2006-11-16 |author=Dwyer, Lucas]

History

The posting system was created as a combined reaction to three different cases involving NPB players moving to the MLB. The first incident occurred in 1995 when pitcher Hideo Nomo, who was not eligible for free agency, announced his retirement from the Kintetsu Buffaloes. This retirement enabled Nomo to void his contract with the Buffaloes and sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers a year later, where he played a season that won him the National League Rookie of the Year award.cite web |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,501020715-300682-2,00.html |title=The Ichiro Paradox |accessdate=2008-04-09 |work=Time |author=Price, S.L. |date=2002-07-08] The following year, the Dodgers signed Nomo to a 3-year, $4.3 million contract. [cite web |url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C02E6DA1039F930A15751C0A960958260 |title=SPORTS PEOPLE: BASEBALL;Dodgers Sign Nomo To Three-Year Deal |accessdate=2008-04-14 |work=The New York Times |date=1996-02-23]

Two years later, in late 1997, the San Diego Padres signed a working agreement with the Chiba Lotte Marines that gave the Padres the exclusive signing rights for Hideki Irabu. Unfortunately, neither team consulted with Irabu before finalizing the deal, and he and his agent soon stated that Irabu would only sign with the New York Yankees. The Major League Baseball Players Association sided with Irabu stating that the system gave the player no freedom. The MLBPA soon lost the argument, and the MLB's executive council ruled that the Padres held the rights to Irabu. Irabu ultimately won, however, when the Padres quickly traded him to the Yankees who signed him for $12.8 million over four years.cite web |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/12/05/sports/base.php |title=Baseball: Irabu's legacy is a high-stakes auction |accessdate=2008-04-09 |work=International Herald Tribune |author=Sandomir, Richard |date=2006-12-05]

The final incident occurred the next year when Alfonso Soriano found out that he was unable to leave the Hiroshima Toyo Carp due to contract restrictions. In addition to Soriano disliking the Japanese's intense practice schedule, the Carp denied him a salary increase to $180,000 per year. Taking the advice of agent Don Nomura, the same agent who represented Hideo Nomo during his retirement from the NPB, Soriano also retired in order to void his contract with the Carp and pursue a career in the MLB. [cite web |url=http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061114&content_id=1740635&vkey=hotstove2006&fext=.jsp |title=Matsuzaka posting system's latest gem |accessdate=2008-04-10 |work=MLB.com |author=Singer, Tom |date=2006-11-14] This decision resulted in the Hiroshima management suing Nomura for $1.1 million as well as threatening legal action against any ball club that negotiated with Soriano. In July 1998, however, MLB Commissioner Bud Selig declared that the MLB recognized him a free agent and the Carp backed down. Soriano signed a 5-year, $3.1 million contract with the New York Yankees the same year. [cite web |url=http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/Soriano/Soriano_bio.html |title=Alfonso Soriano |accessdate=2008-03-31 |work=JockBio.com]

The posting system was drafted that same year, and Bud Selig and NPB Commissioner Hiromori Kawashima signed the deal in December 1998. In its design, each of the problems brought up by the Nomo, Irabu and Soriano cases were addressed. By forcing MLB teams to place bids that eventually act as transfer fees, NPB teams receive compensation for letting their star players out of their contracts. Additionally, allowing Japanese players to negotiate with MLB teams gives them power when dictating the terms of their new contracts. The system only applies to players currently under contract with a Japanese team; it does not apply to free agents, players who have ten or more years of playing service with the NPB or amateur players who have never played in the NPB.cite web |url=http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060911&content_id=1657081&vkey=news_tex&fext=.jsp&c_id=tex |title=Going Deep: Going interactive |accessdate=2008-04-14 |work=MLB.com |date=2006-09-11 |author=Newberg, James] The system does not work in reversal, as it does not regulate MLB players, such as Alex Cabrera, who move to the NPB. [cite web |url=http://www.1888articles.com/major-league-baseball-players-in-japan-strangers-in-paradise-0i8j35p3z1.html |title=Major League Baseball Players in Japan - Strangers in Paradise |accessdate=2008-04-14 |author=Mrocza, Paul]

Process

When a player under contract with a Nippon Professional Baseball team wishes to play in Major League Baseball, he must notify his current team's management and request that they make him available for posting during the next posting period (November 1–March 1).cite web |url=http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061114&content_id=1740635&vkey=news_bos&fext=.jsp&c_id=bos |title=Matsuzaka posting system's latest gem |work=MLB.com |accessdate=2008-08-24 |date=2006-11-14 |author=Singer, Tom] If the team consents, the player (including any other NPB players wishing to be posted) is presented to the MLB Commissioner. The Commissioner then notifies all MLB teams of the posted player and holds a four-day-long silent auction during which interested MLB teams submit sealed bids (in USD) to the Commissioner’s Office. After the allotted four days have passed, the Commissioner closes the bidding process and notifies the posted player's NPB team of the highest bid amount but not who the bidding team is.cite web |url=http://mopupduty.com/index.php/japanese-posting-process-explained/ |title=Japanese Posting Process Explained |accessdate=2008-04-10 |date=2008-01-04] The NPB team then has four days to either accept or reject the nonnegotiable bid amount.

If the bid is rejected, the NPB team retains the player’s rights and the player cannot be posted again until the next off-season. If accepted, however, the bid amount is publicly revealed and the winning Major League team is granted the exclusive rights to negotiate with the player for 30 days. If the player and the MLB team agree on contract terms before the 30-day period has expired, the NPB team receives the bid amount as a transfer fee, and the player is free to play for that team in the MLB in the coming season. If the MLB team cannot come to a contract agreement with the posted player, then no fee is paid, and the player's rights revert back to his NPB team. A player can request to be posted again in subsequent years, and the process is repeated with no advantage to the club that had won the previous year.

Past postings

Of the 37 Japanese-born players playing in the MLB, only twelve have entered the league using the posting system. Since the system's creation in 1998, the players that have utilized it have experienced a range of success. Of the twelve, seven were immediately signed to Major League contracts. These contracts range from $52 million on the high end to $1.4 million on the low end. Of the remaining five, three were signed to minor league contracts and two were unsuccessful in drawing bids from any Major League clubs. The following tables outline each posting and their outcome:

This was Otsuka's second attempt at the MLB after an unsuccessful posting the previous year.
The Dodgers chose not to publicly reveal their bid amount, despite MLB teams traditionally disclosing the amount after negotiating rights have been won. [cite web |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/DODGERS+WIN+NAKAMURA'S+RIGHTS.(Sports)-a0128394736 |title=DODGERS WIN NAKAMURA'S RIGHTS. |accessdate=2008-05-19 |work=Los Angeles Daily News |date=2005-02-1 |author=Jackson, Tony]
This specific amount was chosen by Red Sox owner John Henry because he deemed it lucky. [cite web |url=http://www.bostonherald.com/blogs/sports/red_sox/?p=804 |title=Why $51,111,111.11? John Henry explains |accessdate=2008-04-09 |work=Boston Herald |date=2006-12-15]
The final three digits, 194, represent Igawa's total strikeout count for his 2006 season.
Denotes that the player is a pitcher.

Denotes that the player is a pitcher.

See also

* Baseball in Japan
* Transfer in association football

References

Further reading

* Kirkjian, Tim (December 15, 2006). [http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=kurkjian_tim&id=2697354&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab3pos2 Posting process needs to be altered] . "ESPN The Magazine".
* Rockerbie, Duane W. (July 2007). [http://mopupduty.com///mnt/w0400/d33/s19/b0289d90/www/mopupduty.com///wp-content/uploads/2008/01/japanesepostingrules.pdf Peculiarities of the Major League Baseball Posting System] . "University of Lethbridge".