The Yokohama DeNA Basestars of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) are looking to bolster their lineup.
“The Yokohama club is considering signing Franmil Reyes, 28, who has 108 career home runs in Major League Baseball (MLB), as a new foreign player next season,” Japanese media outlet Sporticianex reported on Nov. 18.
Reyes, a right-handed hitter from the Dominican Republic, debuted in the big leagues in 2018 and has played for six years. This season, he hit just .186 in 19 games for the Kansas City Royals. His accuracy is lacking, but his one-hit power is excellent. He hit 37 home runs in 2019 and 30 in 2021. His MLB career numbers are .249 with 108 home runs. His on-base percentage (0.310) and slugging percentage (0.464) combine for a career OPS of 0.775. His salary for the season is $2 million.
‘Despite his lackluster performance this season, Reyes has made a name for himself in the past as a Japanese big league killer,’ said Sporincianex. In May 2021, he went 2-for-4 with two doubles against Shohei Ohtani (LA Angels). He has four career home runs against Genta Maeda (Minnesota Twins),” and “he hasn’t been shy about hitting the reigning Cy Young Award winner’s pitches, including two homers off Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers) and two off Corbin Burns (Milwaukee Brewers).스포츠토토
Yokohama has received little help from foreign hitters this year. Infielder Neftali Soto has hit 14 home runs, but Tyler Austin has been limited to 22 games due to shoulder surgery. Trey Ambrose had just eight at-bats in four games. The offseason was all about bolstering the batting order, and it looks like the team is going all in on Reyes.