Baseball: A Two-Way Player-Chapter 479 - 90: The Advancing SoftBank Corps

On November 26, 2013, in a large hotel in Tokyo, the award ceremony for the active players of the 2013 season of the Nippon Professional Baseball was underway.

Many star players from the 12 teams belonging to the two major leagues came to the venue, ready to receive official recognition for their outstanding performances in the past season.

Lin Guanglai was also present today, accompanied by two of his teammates: Hasegawa Yu, who had an outstanding season and reached a career year, and Nakagawa Seiichi, who for decades has consistently made exceptional contributions both offensively and defensively.

Both of them were selected for this season’s Gold Glove lineup, with the former winning the batting double crown title.

When all the players were seated, under the host’s guidance, the award ceremony officially began.

The first awards presented were for the Nippon Professional Baseball’s minor league – unlike the major league’s separation into the Central League and the Pacific League, the minor league was divided geographically into the Eastern and Western Leagues.

The SoftBank Team’s minor league squad won the Western League championship last season, showcasing the excellent results of their entire player development system; the Eastern League was clinched by Yakult from the bottom of the Central League, and it wouldn’t be surprising if these players rise swiftly in the coming years.

Not long after, amidst the applause from the player representatives present, Lin Guanglai was invited onto the stage to receive the title of pitcher with the most strikeouts.

In the recently concluded season, he appeared in 25 games and secured a total of 220 strikeouts – this number ranks third in Nippon Professional Baseball history over the 13 years of the 21st century; considering that Lin Guanglai was a high school graduate and only 18 years old, this is already quite an impressive achievement.

Receiving the somewhat miniature commemorative trophy from the award presenter, Lin Guanglai politely smiled at them.

Gaining such a valuable title in his rookie season was undoubtedly something to be happy about; but more than the "most strikeouts" title, Lin Guanglai wanted more.

He turned his gaze to Tanaka Masahiro standing beside him.

In the other’s hands was a trophy identical to his; but the banner on the trophy bore the kanji for three full titles: Best ERA, First in ERA, Most Wins for a Pitcher.

Soon, the stage was occupied solely by him: from the hands of Nippon Professional Baseball’s legendary figure Kaneda Shoichi, Tanaka Masahiro received the radiant trophy – the highest honor for a starting pitcher in Nippon Professional Baseball, the Eiji Sawamura Award.

In 1947, the Yomiuri newspaper established this award to commemorate Japan’s most legendary pitcher: he had achieved 9 strikeouts as a high school student during a 1934 exhibition game between Japan and the USA – his opponents were the star players of various MLB teams at the time, including even the "God of Baseball" Babe Ruth.

Making more than 25 appearances, completing more than 10 games, winning at least 15 games, a win rate above 60%, pitching no less than 200 innings, achieving at least 150 strikeouts ... this series of rules filters out most candidates.

And to win the Eiji Sawamura Award, one must meet most of these rules; otherwise, the Nippon Professional Baseball judges would rather leave the award vacant for a year than make any compromises.

For this reason, the trophy’s value is immensely substantial: only the strongest pitcher, flawless in every aspect and acknowledged by everyone, can be crowned with the honor of the Eiji Sawamura Award!

Sitting below the stage, Lin Guanglai did not hide his emotions, looking up with greedy eyes at the shining Tanaka Masahiro on stage; at the same time, he silently vowed to himself:

"Next year at this time, the one standing here will definitely be me!!!"

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While the award ceremony was in full swing, at the SoftBank Hawks headquarters building in Fukuoka, the entire staff of the editing and contract divisions, from managers to employees, were still working on off-season personnel matters.

After discussing Lin Guanglai’s renewal contract, the SoftBank Team’s brand new salary structure framework was basically complete:

Shetsu Shou, 31 years old, starting pitcher, annual salary 290 million → 400 million yen;

Nakagawa Seiichi, 31 years old, infielder, annual salary 170 million → 270 million yen;

Matsuda Naohiro, 30 years old, infielder, annual salary 100 million → 220 million yen;

Hasegawa Yu, 29 years old, outfielder, annual salary 80 million → 200 million yen;

Igarashi Ryouta, 34 years old, setup/closer pitcher, annual salary 200 million yen remains unchanged;

Honda Yuichi, 29 years old, infielder, annual salary 180 million yen remains unchanged;

Lin Guanglai, 18 years old, starting pitcher/designated hitter/outfielder, annual salary 15 million → 150 million yen;

Mori Yuki, 27 years old, setup pitcher, annual salary 120 million → 140 million yen.

These are the players within the SoftBank Team currently renewed whose total salaries exceed 100 million yen.

Each of them is almost a pillar of the SoftBank team’s pitching or batting lineup and has made great contributions to the entire team; except for the exceptional case of Lin Guanglai, those receiving this level of salary have been long-term veteran contributors to the team.

Among the remaining players, including Imamiya Kenta, Yanagida Yuuki, and Chika Huangda, the majority were cultivated within the SoftBank Team’s own player development system – compared to those veteran players and superstars who transferred from other teams, their salaries are relatively lower, and the increases aren’t as significant, which greatly economizes the team’s resources.