Chicago Cubs "Very Interested" in Japanese Superstar Kodai Senga

The Chicago Cubs have been showing interest in free agent and Japanese superstar ace Kodai Senga.

Are the Chicago Cubs becoming a hotbed for Japanese talent making their way into MLB?

After signing Seiya Suzuki last off-season, the Cubs are now "very interested" in Japanese starting pitcher Kodai Senga according to David Kaplan in his appearance on Des Moines' KXNO on Wednesday.

Senga has been one of NPB's top pitchers over the last decade. In his 11-year career, beginning in 2012 at age-19, Senga has pitched in 224 games and nearly 1100 innings for a 2.59 ERA.

In 2022 that figure was 1.94 across 144.0 innings. He's an expert in soft contact and avoiding the long ball, he's run a rate of just 0.7 HR/9 for his career, a figure that hasn't eclipsed 0.4 in a single season since 2019.

Senga has pitched for the same team his whole career, the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, who drafted him in 2010.

In 2017 he got a chance to play against Major Leaguers in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, a tournament in which he will likely participate in again this spring.

Among his other accolades are his three NPB All-Star selections, five NPB championship rings, and two Mitsui Golden Glove awards.

At 6'2" and nearly 200lbs, Senga is an imposing figure on the mound. He throws a fastball which tops out at 100 mph but generally sits closer to 95-96 mph, a wicked forkball, a cutter and a slider.

His secondary pitch, the forkball, has been so effective throughout his career, it's garnered the nickname, the "ghost fork(ball)".

Because Senga has the requisite nine years of professional experience in Japan, he does not have to through the 'posting' system, in which he receives only a percentage of the free agent contract which he signs. Instead, he can be treated like any other MLB free agent, thus his contract will be cheaper if he does decide to sign with an American team this off-season, a path that seems increasingly likely.

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