Former All-Star Closer To Pitch In Japan

He hasn't pitched in the major leagues since 2020, but 27-year-old MLB outcast and former American League saves leader Roberto Osuna has been welcomed in other baseball markets, like his native Mexico, and Japan. He's agreed to re-sign in the Far East, according to a report. 

Fuente: Lanzador mexicano Roberto Osuna cerca de acordar contrato de un año para regresar con Chiba Lotte Mariners de Japón en 2023.
Pitcher de 27 años tuvo 0.91 ERA, 3 (tres) hits y 32K en 29.2 IP con Chiba Lotte en 2022. pic.twitter.com/rQUB0RqdOB

— Enrique Rojas/ESPN (@Enrique_Rojas1) November 27, 2022

Osuna will sign a one-year contract with Japan’s Chiba Lotte Mariners for the 2023 season, per Enrique Rojas of ESPN. Osuna had a 0.91 ERA, with 32 strikeouts in 29.2 IP, and 10 saves for Chiba Lotte in 2022. He had 10 saves earlier in the year for the Diablos Rojos del México of the Mexican League.

Osuna was one of the top closers in baseball with the Toronto Blue Jays from 2015 through 2018, until he was slapped with a 75-game suspension by MLB that season for an alleged domestic violence incident that was later resolved when his then-girlfriend withdrew the charges. 

No problem for the Houston Astros, though, who took him off the Blue Jays' hands, and watched him post an AL-leading 38 saves in 2019. He pitched only four games for them in 2020 before an elbow injury led the Astros to outright him. 

Osuna has pitched in 2021 and 2022 in Mexico and Japan. Still just 27, it's uncertain if he will ever get another chance to pitch in the majors.

Photo: Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports