Left-handed bullpen Edwin Escobar (32) is hoping to return to the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).안전놀이터
Japanese media Full Count said on Sunday that Escobar wants to return to the NPB next season on his personal social media. "It's been a year since he left the club, but I don't think the longing for Japan has disappeared yet." Escobar from Venezuela joined the NPB in January 2017 by signing with the Nippon-Ham Fighters. In June that year, he wore the Yokohama DeNA BayStars uniform in a trade and later "long run."
Escobar's seven-year record in the NPB is 395 games, 22 wins, 23 losses and 147 holds, with an ERA of 3.17. He is a professional left-handed bullpen session in 2019 (33 holds), 2021 (32 holds), 2022 (34 holds) with more than 30 holds, respectively. He is a type that is close to a tricky left-handed three-quarter pitch and throws a fastball over 150 kilometers per hour. On June 13, 2021, at the match against Nippon Ham, he hit a fastball of 163 kilometers per hour, the highest speed limit for a left-handed pitcher in the history of the NPB, into the catcher's mitt.
Escobar was sluggish in 40 games last year with a 4.55 ERA with two wins and 11 holds. After failing to renew his contract with Yokohama after the season, he returned to the U.S. and signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs. When there was no big league call-up, he ended his contract by opt-out in mid-July and later moved to the Mexican League.
When Yokohama beat the Softbank Hawks to win the Japan Series on the 4th, Escobar posted on social media, "Congratulations. I'm truly happy. I love Yokohama." It remains to be seen whether he will be able to return to the NPB.