Tsuyoshi Nishioka - Adopt A Prospect Thread

[Andy4Twins]

 

Tsuyoshi Nishioka

Birthdate: 7/27/1984 (Age 27)

6'1" 175 lbs.

Switch Hitter, Throws Right

Born in Daito, Osaka

 

Nippon Professional Baseball League Notes

* His debut was on 6/23/2003 (Age 18).

* In his first plate appearance (6/28/2003), he hit a double.

* He only received 11 plate appearances in 2003 and spent most of his time in the Japanese minors.

* His 2003 Eastern League .216 batting average was among the lowest among all qualifying players.

* Upon the advice of his coach, he started switch hitting in 2004.

* His first homerun and stolen base came in the same game (6/27/2004).

* Nishioka's breakout year was in 2005, when he hit just .268 but led the league in triples (11) and stolen bases (41).

* The team won the Japan Series in 2005.

* During 2005, he won the League Best Nine award at SS and the Golden Glove at 2B (due to him splitting time at the positions).

* He starred in the World Baseball Classic in 2006 where Japan won Gold.

* Manager Bobby Valentine used Tsuyoshi exclusively at short stop in 2006 to reduce the risk of injury.

* In his Age 22 season (2007), he hit .300 for the first time ... despite being hampered by a wrist injury and neck pain.

* During 2008, Nishioka reached double digit home runs for the first time (13) and still hit .300. Injuries limited him to 116 games.

* In 2009, Nishioka was named to the team's preliminary World Baseball Classic roster, but was ultimately cut as bothered by injuries.

* In 2010, Nishioka led the league with 206 hits, a .346 batting average, and 121 runs scored.

 

Contract Negotiation

The Chiba Lotte Marines accepted a $5 Million bid through the posting system.

On 12/17/2010, Nishioka officially signed for $9 million over 3 years.

The Twins hold a 2014 Club Option of $4 million with a $250k buy-out.

The minimum commitment is $14.25 million over 3 years with the (albeit small) possibility of paying $18 million over 4 years.

 

2011 Season

* During spring training, Nishioka was named the second baseman.

* His first MLB (4/1/2011) game included going 1 for 3 from the plate with a strikeout and a fielding error.

* One week into his career (4/7/2011), Nishioka suffered a broken left fibula as Yankee Nick Swisher slid into second.

* After missing 59 games, Nishioka returned on 6/16/2011 playing shortstop.

* Final statistics included hitting .226 in 221 at bats, 14 runs scored, 19 RBIs, 0 HR, 15 walks, 43 strikeouts.

* His OBP was .278 and slugging percentage of .249. This makes his OPS .527.

 

2012 Season

* Nishioka was optioned to Rochester on 3/19/2012 making Tsuyoshi Nishioka the highest paid Adopt-A-Prospect.

* Tsuyoshi opened the minor league season on a poor note collecting 2 only hits in his first 19 at bats.

* Nishioka is currently 7 out of his last 20 at bats ... though that only raised his season batting average to .203 (with 3 steals).

* His last game action was on 4/20/2012.

* Nishioka was placed on the 7 day disabled list on 4/24/2012 with a high ankle sprain. The injury was suffered sliding into third.

* I am unaware of any anticipated return.

[darin617]

I thought this was for prospects? Does this mean that all players in the organization have been adopted if Nishioka just got picked???

[gil4]

Does this mean that all players in the organization have been adopted...?

Should I adopt Ryan Mills next?

[Andy4Twins]

Nishioka returned from the disabled list (after being out nearly a full month) with a 1 for 2 performance and a walk on May 15. In fact, he took a walk in each of the four games after returning from the DL against Louisville. Unfortunately, he was cold in the series against Gwinnet going 1 for 10 with another walk. The lone hit was a two run home run on 5/19. This has brought his slugging percentage for the year to .259. OUCH!