Hisashi Iwakuma is one of the top pitchers in Japan, and there is good news for Seattle fans as the announcement comes that he has signed up to play for their team. The 30 year old player has signed a deal with the Mariners to play for them for one year, and he will also be competing for a place in the starting rotation of the club in Spring Training. Iwakuma weighs 170 pounds and stands at an impressive 6 feet 3 inches tall. He has been in his home country for the last season and is now ready to move to the Major leagues.
Iwakuma did try and move over to the Major leagues last year, however this effort did not end in success. Oakland won the right to negotiate with him with a bid of $19.1 million, however he could not reach an agreement with the team on a contract. Fans of Seattle now get to look forward to seeing him play for their team, whether they watch on the television at home after playing OnlinePoker.com or attend the games themselves. Iwakuma himself can look forward to a deal with a $1.5 million base that has the potential of an extra $3.4 million in performance bonuses.
Iwakuma has said that he does not mind accepting an offer that is much less than what Oakland was offering him last year. He is more excited about Seattle’s interest in him, and his new team will actually come up against Oakland at the opening of the regular season. This will be a two-game series in Tokyo and will take place on March 28th and 29th. After visiting the city of Seattle, he said that his family loved it, which was another reason for his decision and he is excited about playing there.
