Ichiro-Like Japanese Shortstop Set for MLB Move
By wchung | 04 May, 2026

Japanese shortstop Tsuyoshi Nishioka is free to move to Major League Baseball via the posting system.

Nishioka’s team in Japan made the announcement Wednesday.

MLB teams will have four business days to bid for the negotiating rights to the 26-year-old Nishioka, who helped the Lotte Marines win the 2010 Japan Series.

The posting system allows big league clubs to bid for negotiating rights to Japanese players who have yet to become free agents.

Nishioka led the Pacific League with a .346 batting average this season and had 206 hits, becoming the first Pacific League player to get 200 hits since Ichiro Suzuki.

TOKYO (AP)