Dodgers import Kenta Maeda consults with countrymen on transition to MLB
PHOENIX – The balls are bigger and slicker. The weather is warmer. The media crush is bigger.
So what’s the biggest adjustment Kenta Maeda faces as he transitions from a standout career in Japan to the U.S. major leagues?
“English," the Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander said without need of translation.
The game mostly remains the same, and that part felt pretty comfortable to Maeda as he threw his first official bullpen session of the spring – he had two previous ones before camp started – in front of team officials and some 35 media members from his native country.
Maeda threw 39 pitches at higher intensity than in his two unofficial sessions, displaying a slider, curveball and two-seam fastball, and declared himself pleased with the results.
“I was able to adjust to throwing off the mound with the major league baseball," Maeda said, with Will Ireton interpreting. “Overall I thought I threw well."
The difference in the baseballs is no small matter. Japanese pitchers sometimes have found it difficult to get a good grip with the balls used in the majors, resulting in lesser movement and/or command of their pitches.
Maeda said he first got a sense for the big-league baseball in the 2013 World Baseball Classic, during which he allowed just six hits and a run in 15 innings over three starts. That showcased the talent he demonstrated in going 97-67 with a 2.39 ERA with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp over eight seasons in the Japan Central League.
Maeda was considered one of the premier free agent pitchers on the market this past offseason but had to lower his asking price because of elbow issues. He finally settled on an eight-year, $25 million contract with the Dodgers that is loaded with incentives, which could add up to another $81.2 million. L.A. also had to pay a $20 million posting fee.
After losing Cy Young Award runner-up Zack Greinke in free agency, the Dodgers sought to fill his void by adding depth to their corps of starting pitchers. Maeda, 27, is the top right-handed candidate to make a rotation that figures to include lefties Clayton Kershaw, Scott Kazmir, Brett Anderson and either Alex Wood or, if healthy, Hyun-Jin Ryu.
To get an idea what to expect in the majors, Maeda consulted with several of his countrymen who have made the transition successfully.
“I’ve spoken with (Hiroki) Kuroda, (Hisashi) Iwakuma, (Yu) Darvish and (Masahiro) Tanaka about the different method here, in terms of making the adjustment here in the States," Maeda said, “so it’s not that surprising."
He wasn’t the only one doing his homework. Catcher Yasmani Grandal, his receiver Sunday, had watched video of Maeda and was enthused about what he saw in person.
“It was a really good bullpen. The location was there, the movement was there," Grandal said. “He might be a rookie in this baseball but he’s already been playing in Japan for a while, so he’s a veteran over there. He knows what he wants to do. We’ll work from there.’’