Bids for Japanese RHP Matsuzaka due Wednesday

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print

BRISTOL, Connecticut - Let the bidding begin.

Major League teams wishing to sign Japanese righthander Daisuke Matsuzaka must submit a posting offer by 5 p.m. EST Wednesday.

The team that makes the highest bid will have a 30-day window to negotiate a deal with Matsuzaka, who is represented by Scott Boras.

If no deal is reached, then Matsuzaka will return to Japan and the major league team gets its posting fee returned.

The Seattle Mariners paid $13.1 million for the right to negotiate a contract with outfielder Ichiro Suzuki in 2001. Suzuki then signed a three-year, $15 million deal with the Mariners.

It's possible that Matsuzaka's posting bid may go for more than $20 million.

The New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and New York Mets are expected to be among the bidders.

The Mariners, who have Suzuki and Japanese catcher Kenji Johjima, have announced they will not make a bid for Matsuzaka.

Matsuzaka, 26, led Japan's Pacific League in wins three times, ERA twice and strikeouts four times in an eight-year career. Last season, he went 17-5 with a 2.13 ERA and struck out 200 in 186 1/3 innings.

Matsuzaka grabbed national attention when he earned the MVP in the inaugural World Baseball Classic last March.

This story is from ESPN.com's automated news wire. Wire index

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print
• Subscribe