Are Foreign Pitchers in NPB actually good? It’s complicated…

Unlike their hitting counterparts, the hype surrounding foreign pitchers in NPB is tamed, with most just filling in back of the rotation spots or holding a setup role in the bullpen.

Despite this, the NPB has recently been able to foster a couple of elite talents on the pitching side that would normally be on MLB rosters, some are due to government conflicts like with the US and Cuba, and others might be due to MLB teams being unwilling to sign players with off the field issues like star closer Roberto Osuna.

So are foreign pitchers successful in NPB? This question goes deeper than just a “Yes or No” answer, so let’s break it down:

*Disclaimer: for a pitcher to qualify, one must throw either 70IP as a starter or 25IP as a reliever.

Where do these pitchers come from?

There were a total of 29 qualified* foreign pitchers in NPB in 2022.

As you might expect, most (62%) foreign pitchers in Japan are from the USA, while 17% are from the Dominican Republic, followed by 10% from Cuba and a single pitcher for each of Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia and Taiwan.

A total of 23/29 (79%) pitched at somepoint in MLB. Out of the six who didn’t, three were Cuban, one was from Taiwan and the others were SP Joe Gunkel, who reached AAA and SP C.C Mercedes, who reached low-A ball in 2015.

How are foreign pitchers used in NPB?

In 2022, 12 foreign pitchers were starters and the other 17 were relievers.

Most of the starters were used as back-end of the rotation options, NPB teams like to employ 6-man rotations and the foreigner starters are usually there to make up the numbers.

As for the bullpen, some managed to lock down closer spots, like with Raidel Martinez for the Dragons, Roberto Osuna for the Marines and Livan Moinelo for the Hawks, but most acted as setup men.

How did they pitch in 2022?

Starters:

*Bold = leader among foreigners / Bold + Italic = NPB leader

As you’ll see in the table above, the results are largely underwhelming, with not a single starter obtaining more than 2WAR, and only five pitching more than 100 innings.

That does not necessarily mean they were bad though. Every starter managed an ERA under 4.00 save for Aaron Wilkerson, Matt Shoemaker and Fernando Romero.

It’s important to note that none of these guys were expected to be their teams ace or potential stars like fans tend to do with foreign hitters.

They filled in the gaps and that’s ok for most NPB teams, since the pitching talent in Japan is deep.

Relievers:

*Bold = leader among foreigners / Bold + Italic = NPB leader

When you compare foreign starters to relievers, the disparities are pretty clear.

Foreign relievers in 2022 averaged 0.8WAR, basically the same as the starters despite pitching 54(!) innings less on average.

Relievers boasted an 86FIP- in 2022, which means they were 14% better than the average NPB pitcher, and 25% better than their starting counterparts, which is to be expected since starters are less effective due to higher workloads but it’s still a notable gap.

The main contributors to this dominance were the cuban trio of Raidel Martinez, Yariel Rodriguez and Livan Moinelo.

All of these guys would be on high-leverage roles in MLB bullpens if not for the US/Cuba embargo, in which cuban players can’t play in North America unless they defect.

Luckily for NPB, Japan’s relationship with Cuba is on better terms, which allows cuban players to pursue professional opportunies freely in Japan.

Verdict

Foreign pitchers in NPB tend to perform up to expectations.

Whether it’s in the back of the rotation or closing out a game, foreigners fill in smaller but still important roles in NPB pitching staffs.

They aren’t superstars, but they do their job, Bill Belichick would be proud.