Rangers Rumors: Texas interested in star Japanese southpaw who could become ace of the future

Nippon Professional Baseball's Seibu Lions are expected to post star left-hander Kaima Taira in early November, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. Japanese news outlets Sanspo and the Yakyu Cosmopolitan recently listed the Texas Rangers as one of the many teams scouting Taira's recent outings. Other interested teams are the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Angels, and Seattle Mariners.

NPB teams typically post players around the middle of November. With the looming lockout, which will begin on Dec. 1, the Lions are likely planning to post Taira earlier than usual. Once a player is posted, he has 45 days to sign with an MLB club. If he cannot come to an agreement with a team, he will return to his NPB club for the upcoming season.

As of now, it appears the Rangers' rotation next year will consist of Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi, MacKenzie Gore, Jack Leiter, and Kumar Rocker. But as we've seen this season, teams need to be prepared for starting pitching injuries. Texas would be wise to add another top starting pitcher such as Taira in the offseason. If the rest of the starters are healthy entering the season, one of them could move to the bullpen or start the season with Triple-A Round Rock.

Kaima Taira, whom the Rangers are interested in, has dominated throughout his NPB career

Taira, 26, has a career ERA of 1.79 with 603 strikeouts in 578 innings across eight NPB seasons. He has spent his entire NPB career with the Lions.

This year, Taira has a remarkable 1.36 ERA over 132 innings. The right-hander's fastball averages 95.6 mph and touches 100 mph. His fastball is part of an eight-pitch arsenal. Remember the last time the Rangers signed a Japanese pitcher with roughly 10 pitches?

Taira has mainly been a reliever throughout his career. He recently converted to a full-time starter.

Taira won't be cheap. Passan said the southpaw might be the second-best pitcher on the market behind Skubal. Taira will turn 27 in November, making him an extremely attractive free-agent target.

It'll be especially interesting to see how lucrative a contract Taira signs given the looming lockout. To prepare for a potential salary structure, big spenders might want to sign Taira to a big contract before the league institutes a cap. Meanwhile, lower-spending teams may want to sign him in case they need to meet a floor.

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