Yes, I know, I suck at updating. What can I say? It's the offseason.

Anyway, as per a FanPost request (thus proving I'm not all that lazy), I am doing a quick breakdown of 22-year old phenom Tazawa Junichi. Junichi is a Japanese pitcher who was drafted by the Orix Buffaloes of NPB but turned down the offer to go pitch in the Industrial League, an association similar to our various independent leagues in the United States (Northern League, Can-Am League, American Association, etc). However, the players in the Industrial League pitch for their "corporate sponsors" and get paid salaries to work, not to play baseball. Most people assume that this "work" requires very little actual day-to-day office operations and that most of the talented players are just pitching for that salary. 

Regardless, his refusal to pitch in the NPB means that he is not subject to the ten-year service clock required to file for free agency. He can sign with whoever he wants, be it an NPB team or an MLB team. Possible suitors include the Braves, Red Sox, and Mets.

Now, on to the pitching mechanics:

The first image is courtesy of mainichi.jp, by way of NPB Tracker. 

Tempo: Junichi is 22-23 frames from maximal leg lift to footplant, which is Below Average. Additionally, you will note that he "gathers" himself at the balance point rather than "drifting" through it like Tim Lincecum does:

I strongly prefer Lincecum's stride.

Arm Action: Junichi limits the amount of reverse rotation in his delivery, which is good. He doesn't forcibly take the arm laterally behind his acromial line, which should help to limit stress on the anterior part of the shoulder. (It is theorized by many biomechanists and exercise physiologists that the elbows getting behind the shoulders in all types of activities - be it bench press of pitching - can cause tears in the labrum.) However, Junichi does have a bad "grab" like Barry Zito does; he tenses his wrist with the ball pointing skyward at the bottom of his arm circle. When viewed frame-by-frame (and aided by the stop-motion image above), it appears that his pitching arm is vertical when his shoulders begin to turn, which should limit stress on his UCL. His elbow is in line or slightly below with his shoulders before delivery, so there's no problem there. Overall, I give him an Average grade.

Ball Release: Junichi uses his glove arm like many Japanese pitchers do - he sticks it straight out with the palm facing first base (for a RHP) and rotates it into his front side. This is great, and it helps add to the velocity of any given pitch he throws. He sets up well for a good followthrough. Excellent.

Followthrough: Junichi has a good glove position due to his ball release phase and throws against a "firm" front side. However, I am concerned slightly with the fact that there isn't great pronation after he finishes the pitch, indicating that he doesn't pronate through release (this is evident in the stills above). He also cuts short his followthrough to some degree, though no real evidence of active braking of his arm exist - he doesn't stick his pitching arm shoulder into the target very well. Average.

Overall, I think Junichi has typical youth mechanics that lead to his inconsistent velocities (reported from 88-92 all the way up to 97 mph). Over time, he will refine them and become more consistent, though not necessarily more safe. It will be interesting to see where he goes after this.

For more information on Junichi, check out NPB Tracker's great page on him here