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Fighters Win Draft Rights to Kiyomiya

  • Category:Event
The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters will likely lose one superstar, but they have the opportunity to replace him after winning the negotiating rights to Waseda Jitsugyo High School slugger Kotaro Kiyomiya at the
Nippon Professional Baseball amateur draft on Thursday in Tokyo.

Seven teams opted for Kiyomiya with their first picks, but it was Fighters front-office executive Masao Kida — drawing third among the seven teams — who came away with the winning envelope. The Fighters might have found a bat to replace two-way star Shohei Otani, who figures to play in the majors next year.

Meanwhile, Hiroshima Carp skipper Koichi Ogata went first in a two-way draw with Chunichi Dragons manager Shigekazu Mori and won the right to negotiate with high school slugger Shosei Nakamura of Koryo in Hiroshima.

Orix and the Saitama Seibu Lions drew lots for the right to work out a contract with left-handed pitcher Daiki Tajima of the corporate league’s JR East, and Buffaloes manager Junichi Fukura grabbed the winning lot after drawing first.

The Yomiuri Giants, who also missed in the lottery for Kiyomiya and for high school hurler Munetaka Murakami, settled for third-choice Takuya Kuwahara, a pitcher from Chuo University.

The Chiba Lotte Marines won the right to negotiate with infielder Hisanori Yasuda of Osaka’s Riseisha High School.
 

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