Texas Rangers Win Yu Darvish Sweepstakes for a Ridiculous $51.7 Million

Remember the Daisuke Matsuzaka hype back in 2006 when everyone thought he invented some new pitch called the "gyroball" that defied space and time? Remember when the Boston Red Sox boasted the highest negotiation bid at $51 million, ended up signing him, and he wound up just being a normal Japanese guy who wasn't any better than John Lackey?

Yeah, so you can understand our skepticism when it comes to Yu Darvish, the newest pitching sensation to possibly hit Major League Baseball. We're not saying he's no better than John Lackey -- that would make the team who literally paid millions of dollars to simply talk with him pretty stupid -- we're just saying we hope he's worth it.

A Moment of Silence for Victims of the Japan Tsunami

As news of a horrific earthquake and tsunami on the Northeast shores of Japan rolled in late this morning, our prayers were with the victims and survivors of this terrible tragedy, while our thoughts moved toward Japanese players in their Spring Training camps in Florida and Arizona.

Hideki Matsui and Ryota Igarashi were awake all night, watching the devastation and praying for the victims and survivors in their faraway homeland. Meanwhile, Daisuke Matsuzaka reached his parents safely in Tokyo, but was unable to get in touch with his grandmother.

Boston Red Sox reliever Hideki Okajima had this to say:

"It’s a tough situation. You can’t control nature, but when something like this happens, you really realize the power of nature."

Matsui shared the same sentiment:

"I am deeply concerned and affected by what is happening in Japan. I pray for the safety of all the people that have been affected and continue to be affected by this disaster."

Ichiro Who? What a Catch

In case you haven't seen this video, prepare to have your mind blown.

[Thanks, With Leather!]

Eri Yoshida: Still Kicking Ass

A year ago this month, we wrote about a 17-year-old, 114-pound, Japanese knuckleballer named Eri Yoshida.

The Kobe 9 Cruiser made history last March by becoming the first female to ever play professional baseball in Japan. Pretty impressive. These days, Yoshida is still kicking ass and taking names: like fellow knuckleballer Tim Wakefield, whose delivery she studied on video as a young girl.

Happy Trails, Kenji Johjima

Kenji Johjima, the first ever Japanese-born catcher to play in the big leagues, has decided to abandon the final two years of his three-year, $33 million contract with the Seattle Mariners in favor of heading back home to Japan.

The 33-year-old backstop isn't calling it quits, however. He's decided to finish his career in his home land.

"After lots of very deep thought and deliberation, I have decided to return home to resume my career in Japan," Johjima said Monday. "I have had a wonderful experience competing at the Major League level. The last four years have been extraordinary, with great teammates and great coaches. I will always be indebted to the Mariners organization for giving me the opportunity to follow my dream. This was a very difficult decision, both professionally and personally. I feel now is the time to go home, while I still can perform at a very high level."

And I Got Mad Hits Like I Was Rod Carew

If we were in Japan right now, Ichiro Suzuki's record-tying hit Wednesday would be a very, very big deal. I mean, it's still a pretty big deal, but it was sort of over-shadowed by the awesomeness of Ken Griffey Jr.'s 400th bomb as a Seattle Mariner.

Isao Harimoto's 3,085 hits (a lone, long-standing Japanese record until yesterday) was knotted up after Ichiro went 2-for-5 including a grand slam in the bottom of the seventh during his team's 11-3 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

You Throw Like a Girl

A five-foot, 114-pound teenager made history in Japan Friday, becoming the first ever female professional baseball player in the country.

Eri Yoshida, a 17-year-old Kobe 9 knuckleballer, made her debut during the team's season opener against the Osaka Gold Villicanes Friday in the spankin' new, four-league Kansai Independent League. She walked the first batter on four pitches to lead off the inning and allowed a stolen base before fanning the next guy swinging.

ESPN's Rob Neyer seems more than a little threatened by the underage schoolgirl in his March 27th article.

Continue reading and rate this story at Fantasy Pros 911.

Lip My Stockings: MLB Goes Global

After a few months of parleys, the Boston Red Sox agreed to hold a two-game series against the Oakland Athletics in Tokyo, Japan on March 25-26, with the A's having home-field advantage.

With Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideki Okajima on the roster, the Sox hope to draw a huge crowd at the Tokyo Dome and even larger viewing audience around Japan and the U.S. after two exhibition games on March 23-24 against Japanese teams.

However, there is speculation that Dice-K may miss the party since his wife is due to deliver their second child near that time.

Oakland will then return home to finish their four-game set at Oakland on April 1-2 against Boston.

Negotiations have also been under way to bring major league baseball to China for the first time when the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres hope to play National League exhibition games in Beijing sometime in mid-March, at the same ballpark to be used for the 2008 Olympics.

[CBS Sportsline]