The Los Angeles Dodgers agreed to a deal with Kenta Maeda, Japan’s top pitcher. The Japanese pitcher is only 27-years-old and has already won two Sawamura Awards, which is equivalent to the MLB’s Cy Young Award. In Japan, this young pitcher managed to hold a 2.09 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and a 175/41 K/BB ratio in 206 1/3 innings last year. These outstanding stats are even lower than the career marks of New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka when he played in Japan. Kenta’s talent drew attention from many teams in the MLB, but the Dodgers were able to offer him the best deal. With Kenta’s addition, the Dodgers will now have a more versatile starting rotation. They now have four left-handed pitchers with Kenta being the only right-handed pitcher. The Dodgers previously added Scott Kashmir, a veteran left-handed pitcher, and now they added Kenta Maeda. After losing ace Zach Grienke to the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Dodgers were in deep need of a solid starting pitcher to add to their rotation. Kenta Maeda will now pitch alongside with Clayton Kershaw, Hyun Jin Ryu, Scott Kashmir, and Alex Wood.

An addition as such emphasizes the strategy that goes into sports and ultimately how professional franchises are run. Sports go beyond mere individual talent, but represent the way various systems are run for the greater good of a team or organization.

<Kenneth Park, La Canada High School, 10th Grade>