The Yusei Kikuchi sweepstakes will officially launch Tuesday morning.
The left-hander can start negotiating with Major League Baseball clubs at 8 a.m. Eastern Time Tuesday, as per a notice distributed to all clubs. The Seibu Lions, Kikuchi’s employer for the past eight seasons, have agreed to post him. Kikuchi must be signed by 5 p.m. Eastern Time on Jan. 2.
While not regarded as highly as Japanese starting pitchers like Yu Darvish, Daisuke Matsuzaka or Masahiro Tanaka, Kikuchi nevertheless is expected to draw widespread industry interest. Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner acknowledged during the recent owners’ meeting that he watched video footage of Kikuchi during a baseball operations session.