With many international players coming to Major League Baseball over the past few years, mainly from Japan, it's something the Philadelphia Phillies will have to improve on being in the middle of.
Unfortunately for the Phillies and other East Coast teams, there's a reason why a lot of those players head West. Japan isn’t close to California, but it’s a lot closer than it is to the East.
That's the harsh reality of why some of these players have decided to play in California, even if we take out the fact that the Los Angeles Dodgers are the best team in baseball.
According to the latest from the Philadelphia Inquirer, not only do the Phillies have to worry about the Dodgers and other West Coast teams, but some East Coast teams, including the New York Yankees and New York Mets, are at an advantage over Philadelphia.
“And with a trio of Japanese stars available this offseason — right-hander Tatsuya Imai entered the posting system this week, joining slugging infielders Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto — the Phillies are at a disadvantage relative to teams that have been active in Japan over the years, notably the Dodgers but also the Mets, Yankees, Cubs, Mariners, and Red Sox,” Scott Lauber wrote.
When speaking to reporters about what he wants to do in the international pool, Phillies president of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, said that he still has to compete and try to land players.
He also acknowledged that while Philadelphia might not be the hotbed for Japanese talent, it's something that he can't make an excuse for.
“Well, you still compete,” Dave Dombrowski said. “Sometimes there’s a little bit more of an obstacle we’re facing. Maybe [Philly] is not the No. 1 place, first and foremost. But you don’t give in to that. You try to create an atmosphere that people want to join, and you’re hopeful that at some time it works out for you.“
It'll be interesting to see if the Phillies can land any of the players who were recently posted out in Japan.
There's a long list of sluggers who make sense for the organization, but if they aren't in Japan scouting these guys from top to bottom, they might not have a chance to land them.