Model and entertainer Yoo Seung-ok had been selected as Korea’s octagon girl at UFC Fight Night 79.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) announced that Yoo, 24, was chosen in the final rounds of screening held at UFC headquarters in Las Vegas.

Yoo took part in UFC Fight Week that was held Nov. 24-28, along with Arianny Celeste and UFC’s first Filipina octagon girl Red Dela Cruz.

Yoo was the second-place winner of the 2014 Muscle Mania model competition and placed among the Top 5 at the 2014 Fitness America Las Vegas world competition.

The post Photo Gallery of New UFC Ring Girl, Yoo Seung-ok appeared first on Asian Players.

Blue Jays second baseman Munenori Kawasaki was an odd addition in 2013. Outside of some video clips of his dance moves in the Seattle Mariners dugout, there wasn’t much to love about the 32-year old coming off a .459 OPS season in 61 games. Kawasaki has stuck around for three years, however, serving as a beloved fan favorite and useful organizational depth.

The majority of Kawasaki’s season was spent with the AAA Buffalo Bisons, where he posted a respectable .245 average in 62 games with eight stolen bases and eight doubles. Kawasaki would appear in 23 games for the Blue Jays at the MLB level, mostly in a pinch-run or defensive capacity, posting a .214 average and two doubles over 34 plate appearances.

His future remains uncertain, but on the rare occasion that we speak in a half-serious manner about Kawasaki the ball player, it’s clear that he comes with many limitations. At the very least, though, his game on the field is of a far higher quality than a certain Toronto radio advertisement.

The Good:

It’s easy for fans to love the man but bash the player with Kawasaki. For me, it’s an issue of context. He’s never been expected to fill any sort of prominent role, and never has. That’s fine. There’s value in organizational depth that keeps a hole plugged in the minor leagues.

Minor league veterans allow for some level of roster consistency in the constantly-moving world of prospects. With Kawasaki at second base or a veteran outfielder steadily monitoring centre field, there isn’t a need to force a younger prospect into an unnatural position for the betterment of the AA or AAA team. It keeps things normal, so to speak. At the AAA level, Kawasaki has mostly held his own. His character cannot be completely discounted, either. While his robust personality doesn’t put runs on the board, it’s great for the clubhouse and team chemistry.

The Bad:

To go along with an 80-grade personality, Kawasaki has a long list of 30-to-40-grade tools. Ideally, a depth piece with the potential to see MLB playing time will have some sort of dominant trait that can be used. For example, Ezequiel Carrera‘s speed, while it wasn’t on display often enough in 2015, makes him a pinch-run upgrade to most hitters late in the game. For a time, Ryan Goins was the depth piece with an elite glove. Unfortunately, Kawasaki lacks that strong trait.

There seems to be a level of loyalty between the Blue Jays and Kawasaki, but with Anthopoulos gone, that may dissolve. I’ve often wondered if he would ever return to Japan, where he starred in the Japan Pacific League with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks from 2006 until 2011. At age 26 in 2007, Kawasaki put up a triple slash of .329 / .381 / .428 with four (4!) home runs. He was more than just a name over there.

If he returns to the Blue Jays, so be it. Depth pieces like Kawasaki are always needed, and while he doesn’t have the boom potential of an addition like Colabello or Carrera, he’ll keep a spot warm somewhere in the system. What’s more important is adding talent above Kawasaki so that he isn’t force into action.

Blue Jays 2015 year in review: Munenori Kawasaki.

The post Blue Jays 2015 year in review: Munenori Kawasaki appeared first on Asian Players.

Korean first baseman Dae-ho Lee has received offers from major league clubs in the two-year, $4-5 million range.Lee is reportedly seeking around $15 million on a three-year deal, so it appears his reps have some work to do. Kim notes that Lee could be paid around $5 million in 2016 if he returns to play in Japan, so he might just wind up doing that if the offers don’t improve. Lee, 33, batted .282/.368/.524 with 31 home runs for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks last season. He is a free agent and does not have to go through the posting process.

via Fantasy Baseball Breaking News – Rotoworld.com.

The post Lee Dae-ho has received offers from MLB teams appeared first on Asian Players.

via Ellie Day Taken From Hoops Game on Stretcher After Collision with LeBron James | Golf.com.

The post Watch: Half-Asian Jason Day’s wife gets crushed by Lebron James appeared first on Asian Players.

Heavyweight project Taishan Dong (6-0, 3 KO) was also a winner on Friday, though he expressed some displeasure with his performance, a four-round decision over Daniel Arambula (3-2, 1 KO) on scores of 39-36, 39-36, and 38-37. Taishan lost one point for repeatedly pushing his opponent down.

"I’m not very happy because I wanted the knockout," said Taishan. "I had a lot of practice, but I think I still need to train more."

via Joseph Diaz Jr, Andrew Cancio, Taishan Dong win in California – Bad Left Hook.

The post Watch Fight: Taishan Dong goes to 6-0 with win in California appeared first on Asian Players.

Jeremy Lin’s career was drowning at this time last season. A random castoff playing for the hopeless Los Angeles Lakers, Lin wasn’t able to impact games like he once did. Los Angeles’ system didn’t suit his skill-set, and he really struggled to fit in.

What a difference a year makes. Now Lin is thriving as a Sixth Man of the Year candidate for the Charlotte Hornets. Here’s why, according to CBS Sports:

Leading Charlotte’s second unit, Lin is roughly averaging the same numbers he did last season, 11.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists, but he has been playing a more consistent role for the Hornets which allows him to play with more confidence. Using his combo-guard skills, Lin attacks the basket, sets up teammates for threes and is the primary ball handler for the Hornets off the bench. Lin not only runs Charlotte’s second unit but since he plays wells with Kemba Walker, he also closes out games.

The Hornets have their lowest point differential with Lin on the bench, and they outscore opponents by a sizable 8.4 points per 100 possessions when he plays. That’s major.

His PER and usage rate are the highest they’ve been since he was on the New York Knicks, and he’s never taken better control of the ball. Lin isn’t a star, but the Hornets don’t need him to be. All they need is a useful role player who attacks off the bench. That he can do.

Lin’s value in Charlotte’s system is humongous. He gives them the aggressive, creative ball-handler they badly need to command their second unit and create opportunities for guys like Frank Kaminsky, Spencer Hawes and Jeremy Lamb.

The on/off splits are slightly disingenuous due to the fact that Lin spends a bunch of his time against opposing bench players, but discounting his impact would be a mistake, particularly since the Hornets have the NBA’s fifth best offense and fifth highest assist-to-turnover ratio.

Lin’s shot isn’t falling on a consistent basis, and that hampers Charlotte’s spacing, but he’s still capable of making up for it with the occassional dose of Linsanity.

The 27-year-old scored 35 points in a big 10-point win over the Toronto Raptors on December 17, and followed that up with a 15-point, seven-assist, six-rebound effort against John Wall and the Washington Wizards.

The Sixth Man race is wide open right now. Andre Iguodala is doing miraculous things for the miraculous Golden State Warriors; Will Barton is a shining light in Denver; and Ryan Anderson continues to open up the floor whenever Alvin Gentry plugs him in beside Anthony Davis.

Lin’s name definitely belongs in their company, and him actually winning the award would make for a fantastic story.

vote here: Is Jeremy Lin the leading candidate for Sixth Man of the Year? | FOX Sports.

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By Frank Nam

There are a few big themes that dominate who I am. Two of them are being Korean-American and playing/coaching ultimate.

My first foray into ultimate was at my Korean church’s summer camp in NYC. The best teams back then were the teams at New York’s magnet public schools Bronx High School of Science, Stuyvesant High School and Brooklyn Technical High School. A large percentage of those players were Korean-American immigrants and to me ultimate to Koreans in NYC was akin to football to high schoolers in Texas – they just seemed to go together. Imagine my surprise when I stepped onto my first practice at Rutgers University to find that I was one of two Asians on the team and that everyone seemed bigger and faster than me. As my ultimate journey continued, I quickly stopped associating ultimate with Koreans.

Then there was Potlatch. I glanced at the team list in mid-2000 and got excited when I saw a team’s description as hailing from Korea. I envisioned myself playing with this team in the future but I was confused when I found out the team was composed of mostly white people. They explained how they all had taught English in Korea as ex-pats and had moved back to the states and wanted to continue to play within their social group. I was glad they were there but I was also disappointed. I hoped to re-live a bit of my high school ultimate days filled with Korean teammates, and this Potlatch squad wasn’t quite that.

In the spring of 2013, I decided to visit Korea for the third time since my family immigrated in 1976. It had been 16 years since my last trip and I was excited to explore Seoul on my own for the first time as an adult. A friend of mine in Seattle connected me with a handful of Korean players and I got a chance to practice, eat and hang out with them. It was a joint practice and there were Korean players and foreign players. Ever since then, I kept in touch and got another chance to meet the Korean ultimate community at the 2015 Jeju Fresh Fourteens tournament in April.

(Side note: Seattle Sockeye’s Will Chen has been quoted as saying the Jeju tournament is one of his favorite tournaments anywhere. He’s right. For about $90 you get two nights of hotel accommodations, beer all weekend, buses to the field and back, all meals all weekend covered, a Friday night registration party and a Saturday all-you-can-eat buffet dinner party. For $90!)

In both trips I was struck by two different observations. The first was the large number of ex-pats who played the game and the small number of Korean nationals that played the game. However there were at least 2 teams at the Jeju tournament comprised mostly of Koreans. The second was that everyone in the community (ex-pat or Korean) was incredibly hungry for more and more ultimate knowledge. Mario O’Brien has told me that Rise Up has done more clinics in Korea than any other country. People there are excited about the game and the sport is gaining popularity among Korean nationals.

I got a chance to talk to leaders of the Korean Ultimate Players Association during the Jeju tournament and there were some informal discussions about coming back to coach a team or a clinic in the future.

When I learned that KUPA was planning to send a mixed team to the 2015 Asia Oceanic Ultimate Championships I got excited and asked them (and the captains) if they would be interested in having me tag along to help in any way needed. I was incredibly grateful and excited when they approved for me to join them as their coach! This was something I dreamed of as an immigrant kid in NYC (although my dream was playing for a Korean national team but you take what you can get) and I enthusiastically booked my travel.

I travelled to Seoul a week before the tournament and helped out at two practices over the weekend. In speaking with captains I soon realized there was some tension on the team tied to language, culture and expectations. Some Koreans were unhappy that most of the practices were in English and it was hard to understand — most of the practices were led by foreigners (only two of the non-Korean citizens on the team spoke fluent Korean). There was also some tension about expected play time as the team was representing Korea at AOUC but the best players for the most part were foreigners.

Korean ultimate is now at a really important stage of their growth. The passion and numbers of ex-pats really fueled their leagues and growth up to this point but now the sport has started to take root with Korean citizens. The AOUC tournament was the first time that KUPA had decided to send a national team to an international tournament. There was a Korean team at Lecco, but it was more like a club team filled mostly with ex-pats. There were 21 members of this AOUC team and only 8 were foreigners (7 from the US and 1 from Malaysia). Two of the three captains were Korean citizens.

I thought my role would be to help with strategy and provide tips. I never considered calling lines but I realized that as an outsider it’d be helpful for me to do that. I was okay with playing the role of the “bad guy” after speaking with the captains about what they wanted in terms of sub-calling. If the American captain called lines any perceived slight of Korean playing time would be called into question as playing favorites and if the Korean captains called lines they’d be under intense pressure to play other Korean nationals more. I could be unbiased. That was my hope at least.

Any coach at any level will tell you that calling lines is one of the hardest things to do. However, at AOUC I had the burden of calling lines and thinking about strategy while also trying to delicately balance play time between foreigners and Korean nationals with winning and being competitive. It was one of the hardest coaching tasks I have ever performed and I hoped I did okay.

Korea came into the tournament ranked 5th out of 10 teams. That seeding seemed a little high for most of our team but we proceeded to finish 3rd in our pool and held seed. We defeated United Arab Emirates (how is UAE part of Asian-Oceanic is anyone’s guess) and Chinese Taipei while losing a close game to Hong Kong. We were soundly defeated by Team Japan, the tournaments’ one seed.

On day 2 we found ourselves facing the Philippines in quarters. This team had many members of the same team that played the US All-Stars in Manila a week ago, but we found ourselves holding our own. We ended up losing 11-14 and were knocked out of the championship bracket.

On day 3 we had a 5th/6th place game to determine if we would hold seed against Hong Kong. Although we lost on universe point to take 6th we played incredibly well and the team felt great about how we competed. We watched the finals where the Philippines (after upsetting Japan in semi-finals) faced off against Australia. The Philippines would win that game and we felt even better after giving them such a good game the day before.

I was incredibly proud of this team that was mostly comprised of Korean nationals who had not been playing ultimate that long. In our team huddle after our second loss to Hong Kong, I told them that this tournament was just the foundation. More than our placement or our scores, other countries took notice of Team Korea not just because how we played but how we looked. We were definitely a national team and not a team dominated mostly by foreigners.

The two players that stood out during this tournament were Haeri Kim and Brice Douglas Dixon. Haeri was one of the three captains and was the most dominant woman on the team. She is fast, fearless, can throw dimes and shuts down her opponent. I would take her on Seattle Underground in a heartbeat! Brice was the Callahan nominee from The University of Arizona a few years ago and is teaching English in Korea. He played incredibly well all weekend with his throws, break-marks and lay-outs. He stepped up in our game versus the Philippines and was a huge reason why we competed so well against them!

AOUC 2015 was all about pouring the concrete and Korea needed to use this experience to catapult themselves into the next stage of growth. I told the team that they were all ambassadors now. They had represented their country well and now they needed to go home and tell everyone about their experience to awaken the passions of their fellow citizens.

The next chapter is London in 2016 and Worlds. Keep your eyes open and join me in watching Korea’s rise in the international scene!

via Dae Han Min Guk: Growing Korean Ultimate – Skyd Magazine.

The post Dae Han Min Guk: Growing Korean Ultimate appeared first on Asian Players.

via Teen sprinter Miyamoto determined to overtake Kiryu – The Japan News.

The post Searching for a Japanese track star for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics: Teen sprinter Daisuke Miyamoto determined to overtake Kiryu appeared first on Asian Players.

Baseball player Kim Hyun-soo expressed his ambitions for his career at a press event in Seoul on Tuesday. He came to Korea after signing a two-year contract worth US$7 million with the Balitmore Orioles last week.

The former Doosan Bears outfielder is approaching his transition to Major League Baseball in the U.S. with great confidence.

He is especially excited about flexing his skills against pitchers like David Price of the Boston Red Sox, who won the Cy Young Award in the American League in 2012. Price is known for his aggressive game and especially for not allowing many walks.

Kim also said he hopes to end his career in MLB.

“Returning to Korea would mean that I was no longer wanted in MLB,” he explained. “So I hope to play in the U.S. until I will retire.”

via The Chosun Ilbo (English Edition): Daily News from Korea – Kim Hyun-soo Excited About Starting His Career in Baltimore.

The post New Korean MLB Player Kim Hyun-soo Excited About Starting His Career in Baltimore appeared first on Asian Players.

LAS VEGAS – Michinori Tanaka gritted his way out of one submission attempt after another and kept the pressure on Joe Soto, right up until the pace he maintained threatened to exhaust him completely.

But in the eyes of at least two judges, the work from Tanaka (11-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) was enough to earn him the nod over a game, aggressive Soto (15-5 MMA, 0-3 UFC), resulting in a split-decision victory (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) for Tanaka after a thrilling and at times frantic fight.

The bantamweight bout was part of the preliminary card of today’s UFC 195 event at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass ahead of additional prelims on FOX Sports 1 and a main card on pay-per-view.

The story of the first two rounds of the fight was the battle between Tanaka’s takedowns and Soto’s guard game. After peppering Soto with counter right hands and standup attack that was difficult for Soto to time or catch up with, Tanaka put Soto down with takedowns in both the first and second frames, only to find himself immediately fending off submission attempts once the fight hit the floor.

Using everything from guillotines to gogoplatas, Soto was a constant threat off his back. Several times Tanaka seemed on the verge of being submitted by the array of chokes Soto threw his way, but each time he managed to escape.

All that activity took its toll by the third round, however, as Tanaka became visibly exhausted and saw his output wane as Soto came on stronger. Taunting his opponent in between blasting him with jabs, Soto claimed the upper hand quickly in that final round, but again had his momentum halted by Tanaka’s takedowns.

In the end, Tanaka seemed happy to survive that final round after yet another close guillotine choke attempt. From there, the Japanese fighter could only put his faith in the judges, two of whom rewarded him with the win after a close, exciting fight that could have easily gone either way.

“After the fight, Joe and I had a conversation and he was very supportive,” Tanaka said. “He wished me all the best and gave me several compliments on my wrestling and submission defense. It’s always great to fight someone that has a respect for the sport like I do, and it was a nice way to end our fight.”

Soto, surprisingly, didn’t take issue with the judges’ decision.

“I’m really good off my back – one of the best in the world – and so I really take pride in that,” Soto said. “He has a very high tolerance for chokes. Anyone else in the world would have tapped. I had him three different times and he really shocked me the way he slipped out. I agree with the decision because I know how they score rounds. He landed the takedowns and I was on my back a lot, but I did more damage and I had the submission attempts. If I was a judge I would have scored it two rounds to one in his favor or a draw if you gave me a 10-8 round. It was the right decision.”

With the win, Tanaka bounces back from a split-decision loss in September of 2014. Soto has now lost three straight in the UFC, despite a strong performance when fighting for the UFC bantamweight title in his debut.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 195 results include:

• Michinori Tanaka def. Joe Soto via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

via UFC 195 results: Michinori Tanaka keeps submission-happy Joe Soto from first UFC win | MMAjunkie.

The post UFC 195 video: Michinori Tanaka keeps submission-happy Joe Soto from first UFC win appeared first on Asian Players.

Their signings have slipped somewhat under the radar in recent weeks, but with everything quiet on the free-agent front for the time being, this offseason’s high-profile international signings, particularly the players from Asia, deserve a closer look. What do scouts think of these still-somewhat-unknown players, and what do their signed contracts indicate about where their respective international markets are heading in the near and long-term future?

Of those signings, the most notable was this past weekend’s reported Dodgers pact with Japanese righty Kenta Maeda, which we covered in detail here. The purported terms are unique: an eight-year deal with $25 million guaranteed and a host of incentives of unknown attainability and value. On the surface, the money seems light, especially now that the new NPB (Nippon Professional Baseball)/MLB posting agreement allows Japanese players to negotiate with all of the clubs that were willing to meet their posting fee requirement.

While Japanese players now enjoy something resembling a free market for their services under the new posting agreement, Korean professionals seeking new challenges in MLB remain able to negotiate only with the MLB team that submitted the highest posting bid. The lack of leverage Korean players wield during such negotiations has been evident this winter, epitomized by the Orioles’ two-year, $7 million deal with Korean outfielder Hyun-soo Kim.

Kim went undrafted out of Seoul’s Shinil High School — the same school that produced former Braves prospect Jung Bong — and signed with the Doosan Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2006. In 2008, Kim won the KBO (Korea Baseball Organization) batting title, a Gold Glove and was runner-up in the league’s MVP voting. He has been a household name in South Korea ever since.

The KBO’s hyper-inflated offensive environment forces us to pause when considering Kim’s .326/.438/.541 batting line from 2015. And while his freakish strikeout-to-walk ratio of 63-101 is far too impressive to simply ignore, it’s worth noting that former major leaguer Eric Thames, who posted a 47-6 K-to-BB ratio in 130 plate appearances with the Mariners in 2012 before heading to South Korea, also walked more than he struck out in 2015 KBO play.

Without a reliable large sample of KBO imports to set a statistical precedent, it’s difficult to lean heavily on Kim’s stats to determine what he might do in MLB, so we look to scouting for answers. Kim has some unique hitting traits: He can spray line drives to all fields despite the hips and feet of a pull-only hitter. That skill is the product of Kim’s natural swing path and his willingness to let pitches travel deep into the hitting zone before making contact. Because of Kim’s natural inclination to stride down the first-base line and open his hips early, scouts are concerned he may be vulnerable on the outer half of the strike zone and to off-speed stuff running away from him.

Kim’s instincts and surprising athleticism should make him an average to above-average defender in left field while he’s still in his physical prime. The league-average left fielder hit .256/.319/.411 in 2015, and all but the slugging percentage seem reasonably attainable for Kim, based on reports of his hitting acumen and approach. If he falls short on power, he’ll buy back some overall value with his glove. The two-year deal also will allow Kim to re-enter free agency before he turns 30 (unless the O’s lock him up, of course).

His fellow countryman, newly acquired Twins 1B Byung-ho Park, will not have issues with power.

via Hyun-soo Kim, Byung-ho Park profiles, thoughts on Pacific Rim talent, more notes – MLB.

The post ESPN: Hyun-soo Kim, Byung-ho Park profiles, thoughts on Asian talent, more notes appeared first on Asian Players.

An asian fan in a Lakers jersey appears to be ready to put on a Warriors jersey during the Golden State Warriors vs Lakers game in Oakland.  The Warriors were leading big at the time of the jersey switch.

Video: http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=14512767

via Did this Lakers fan switch sides? – ESPN Video.

The post Asian Lakers fan Caught on Video for Switching Sides appeared first on Asian Players.

Henry Nguyen and Peter Guber envision their new Major League Soccer team taking the field somewhere in the Los Angeles area in early 2017 in a sparkling new stadium filled with roaring fans.

via Los Angeles Football Club Launch – YouTube.

Will Ferrell’s hilarious introduction speech,

The post Henry Nguyen and Co-Owner Will Ferrell to start Los Angeles Football Club in MLS for 2017 appeared first on Asian Players.

It seems like only a few yesterdays ago that the Dodgers signed Scott Kazmir to add another live arm to their staff. A fewer yesterdays ago news broke that L.A. was also adding Japanese star Kenta Maeda to the rotation. The Maeda news was far from surprising, given the Dodgers’ need to have as many pitchers with pulses as possible, and there’s a genuine non-zero chance that Maeda is going to pitch well enough to succeed in MLB. What’s surprising about the Maeda deal is, well, the terms of the deal itself.

If Kazmir’s first-year opt out was strange, Maeda’s contract is downright confusing. First reported by Christopher Meola and confirmed by Joel Sherman, Maeda’s contract runs for eight years but only has a base salary of $25 million. Most of his potential earnings will be tied up in incentivized money relative to his workload, and those incentives could reach $10-$12 million each year.

Assuming that Maeda gets his $10 million every year, he could end up being paid somewhere in the neighborhood of $105 million, if not more. For an untested but talented and mature arm in this pitching-infatuated market, that nine-figure number is entirely reasonable. The matter at which Maeda has to arrive at that number is wildly unconventional. No other major league starter that is currently signed to a guaranteed deal (basically every starter that’s signed an extension or has reached free agency and signed a big league deal) has his income so inherently tied to his health. Because baseball’s incentivized money is tied to workload and not performance (thank you collective bargaining agreement) Maeda only gets paid what he’s truly worth on the open market if his arm doesn’t blow out or his rotator cuff doesn’t go up in smoke.

Of course, Maeda was never truly on the open market. He had to be posted by his team in Japan, the Hiroshima Carp, and then teams had to pay the $20 million dollar posting fee for the right to negotiate with him. The Dodgers are one of a select few teams comfortable with dispensing of $20 million for the mere right of being able to place a call to Maeda’s agent. One would think that they’d have been willing to toss an especially player-friendly contract Maeda’s way to make sure that they secured his services.

That’s not what happened, of course. Maeda’s deal is incredibly team-friendly. It’s easily the most team-friendly eight-year deal ever, and even that description doesn’t do it justice. If Maeda misses a full season with an injury, the Dodgers only have to pay him $6 million to sit on the bench, rather than the $22 million that would be owed to Masahiro Tanaka in the same instance. There’s no opt-out clause similar to the one Tanaka will have the chance to exercise following the 2017 season. Maeda will be pitching for the Dodgers from ages 28-35, the prime of his career. Maeda is massively gambling on himself with this contract.

He has good cause to, of course. Maeda is coming off a season that saw him throw 206.1 innings of 2.03 ERA ball and win the Sawamura Award, Japan’s version of the Cy Young Award. He set a career low in HR/9, and added a changeupthat he’s used to devastating effect. His fastball velocity doesn’t blow anyone away, but Maeda’s the same sort of super-junkballer that Tanaka is without the heinous wipeout stuff. He is unlikely to be the ace-quality pitcher that an uninjured Tanaka is, but he should be more than serviceable.

There are plenty of more than adequate foreign players waiting to make their eventual jumps to the highest level of competition. Maeda’s deal may very well effect their pay levels. It’s quite a leap from Tanaka’s 7/$155 million and opt out to Maeda’s NFL-style incentivized mess. It’s not as if there’s a massive difference in talent levels between the two pitchers. Tanaka is certainly better, and he’s younger than Maeda but the difference isn’t exactly Clayton Kershaw and Jerome WIlliams. Unless something unsightly arose on Maeda’s physical, the Dodgers and Maeda’s representatives at the Wasserman Media Group may have just set a doozy of a precedent for future international signees.

This is the kind of contract that would send the MLBPA into a blind rage. It’s the kind of contract that the MLBPA has fought so hard to prevent. The deal gives future international players less of a base to work from, and could easily lead to them missing out on money that they very much deserve. When super-pitcher Shohei Otani comes to the big leagues, will he be paid what he’s worth?

Of course, it’s entirely possible that Maeda’s reportedly odd contract is due to a medical issue, and we’ll find out soon enough whether or not that’s the case. Yet in what’s been a fascinating offseason, the Maeda deal is the strangest transaction yet. It’s something we’ve never seen before, and definitely worth keeping an eye on.

via Kenta Maeda’s reported Dodgers contract is very strange – Beyond the Box Score.

The post Japanese Cy Young winner Kenta Maeda signs with Los Angeles Dodgers appeared first on Asian Players.

Sirens with an extra string to their bow are always special, and Kimo suggested the lovely Sonia Ursu-Kim, who also happens to be a professional basketballer.

Sonia’s parents met in Romania, her mother is a native Romanian and father was a Korean naval engineer. She grew up in both countries and has played in both countries’ basketball leagues, and hopes to play in the US in the future or in one of the major European leagues. Sonia has chosen Romania as the country she represents internationally, I’m sure to the disappointment of all the Korean basketball fans, and the majority of the male population for that matter. A very talented lady, thanks Kimo!

Stats

Born July 24, 1993

Suceava, Romania

Nationality: Romanian/South Korean

Listed height: 5’9″ (1.75m)

The lovely Sonia Ursu-Kim, who also happens to be a professional basketballer.

Sonia’s parents met in Romania, her mother is a native Romanian and father was a Korean naval engineer. She grew up in both countries and has played in both countries’ basketball leagues, and hopes to play in the US in the future or in one of the major European leagues. Sonia has chosen Romania as the country she represents internationally, I’m sure to the disappointment of all the Korean basketball fans, and the majority of the male population for that matter. A very talented lady, thanks Kimo!

Stats
Born July 24, 1993
Suceava, Romania
Nationality: Romanian/South Korean
Listed height: 5’9″ (1.75m)

The post Photo Gallery: Sonia Ursu-Kim 김소니아 Isn’t Just a Pretty Face, She’s a Professional Basketball Player appeared first on Asian Players.

Tennessee Titans quarterback and St. Louis alum Marcus Mariota will be at this year’s Polynesian College Football Hall of Fame Celebration Dinner.

Mariota will present the 2015 Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award to Notre Dame Offensive lineman Ronnie Stanley.

Mariota won the honor last year.

In his first season in the NFL, Mariota threw for 2,818 yards, 19 touchdowns, 10 interceptions. He rushed for 252 yards, two scores and caught a 41 yard touchdown pass.

via Mariota to present 2015 Polynesian College Football Player of th – Honolulu, Hawaii News and Weather – KITV Channel 4.

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ST. LOUIS (AP) — Oh Seung Hwan has been such a dominant pitcher in Japan that he has two nicknames: “Fi-nal Boss” and “Stone Buddha.”

The St. Louis Cardinals project the Korean with 357 career saves as a reliever who’ll get the ball to their own record-setting closer, Trevor Rosenthal.

“We felt like we wanted to do something to ramp it up,” general manager John Mozeliak said Monday at a news conference to announce the signing of Oh to a one-year contract with a club option for a second year. “He really matched up well for what we were trying to accomplish.”

The 33-year-old Oh, who had 41 saves last year, said through an interpreter that playing in the major leagues has long been a dream and now “the dream comes true.”

“I’ve achieved everything in Korea and Japan as a closer,” Oh said. “I wanted a new environment and was looking for motivation.”

Oh had been facing a suspension for casino gambling had he returned to pitch in Korea.

He said he hadn’t been aware that casino gambling was illegal in that country.

Mozeliak said the sides came to an agreement before that suspension was announced.

Oh signed a free agent deal with Hanshin prior to last season. He led the Central League in saves in 2014 and ’15, setting the record for most saves by a Korean pitcher in Japanese baseball.

via Ex-Hanshin closer Oh joins Cards – The Japan News.

The post Another Korean to join MLB – Pitcher Oh Seung Hwan signs with St Louis Cardinals appeared first on Asian Players.

CHANGCHUN, China, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) — Chinese basketball star Yi Jianlian snatched 48 points and 11 rebounds on Wednesday, helping Guangdong edge Jilin 118-114 in the 30th round of the 2015-2016 season’s Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league.

Jilin’s 2-point attempts’ accuracy was 60 percent all over the match, Josh Akognon led the home team with 38 points, Peter Ramos grabbed 24 points and 14 rebounds. The two let fans see hopes of upsetting the visitors.

But Yi put the game beyond Jilin’s reach since the start of the fourth quarter.

Yi dunked four times during the match, each of which happened at the crossroads. Although Josh narrowed the gap to two points few seconds before the final, Guangdong could keep its advantages till the end by ‘air domination’.

"The growing shortage of our inner players is becoming more serious, because of Yi," said Jiang Xuyong, head coach of Jilin.

"This is a big team for us, I am satisfied with our players’ performances today, in general," he added.

via Yi lifts Guangdong over Jilin 118-114 | Shanghai Daily.

The post Yi Jianlian scores 48 points in Guangdong win over Jilin and shows why he’s still the best Chinese basketball player appeared first on Asian Players.

Matt Smith is an offensive cutter for the Atlanta Hustle of the AUDL. Using his speed and quick hops, Smith is a prolific goal scorer. In 2015, he was one of the league’s leading goal scorers with 66 goals. Smith also added 17 assists.

Smith made it onto ESPN SportsCenter Top10 Plays with this goal,

Many Asians enjoy playing Ultimate. We’ve compiled a list of Asians playing Pro Ultimate.
As a youth, Matt Smith lived in Hawaii. He is of Caucasian and Chinese ancestry. AsianPlayers.com interviewed him for this piece.

1.) What got you interested in playing Ultimate? How long have you been playing the game?

I signed up for the ultimate team my freshman year in college during the club-signup day at Colby College. I signed up for the surf club, the woodsman team, and the ultimate team. I went on one surf trip in Maine and decided the beach was too far, the water too cold, and the waves too small to seriously pursue surfing in Maine. Ultimate practice was scheduled before the woodsman one so I went to ultimate first, got my first sky and just never stopped coming.

Ultimate was a great break from the ultra disciplined basketball program I had participated in during my high school days. I initially liked the sport because I didn’t feel obligated to practice; I could just come out when I had the time. It’s ironic that I ended up putting so much time and effort into it, by now probably more hours than I’ve spent playing basketball or anything else.

My hallmate, Chase Baker, was also a big part of me staying committed to playing in those first years. He would always stop by my room and grab me on the way to practice and we roomed together from sophomore year on. It’s always easier to break into something when you’ve got a buddy doing it with you. So I guess I’ve been playing for 9 years now, 18-27, and have enjoyed every minute of it.

2.) How’s the Ultimate scene in Hawaii? What’s it like to play in Hawaii?

To be honest I’m not really that informed on the ultimate scene in Hawaii because I didn’t start taking ultimate seriously until I was no longer living there full time. There’s definitely a couple leagues there that I think average between 8-10 teams and they have two major tournaments, Hopu and Kaimana, that are generally well attended.

I think the sport struggles there because there are so many other outdoor activities to compete with. When I was growing up I spent my time surfing during the day and playing basketball at night, ultimate never even popped up on my radar. Also, the most enthusiastic/skilled players seem to come and go from the mainland too frequently to get a consistent, top level program developed.

That’s not to say there aren’t some very talented, local players there. I’ve met some of them through pick up and one tournament I played with a Hawai’i traveling team while I was in college. It’s just a volatile ultimate landscape and ultimate is not a major part of the cultural fabric yet.

It’s unfortunate because it’s great a great place to play from an objective standpoint. The weather is always nice, you can play year round, and there’s plenty of nearby beaches to cool off in afterward.

3.) I know you’re an avid surfer, which beach in Hawaii is your favorite to surf?

My homebreak is called Concessions. It’s part of Ala Moana Beach Park which is a really special place. It’s a large park with lots of field space and a lot of beach space as well. There’s a couple of reef breaks where my brother taught me how to surf and I put a lot of time in there after he left for college.

I’m a South shore kid though and I would paddle out anywhere on that southside string of breaks. I spent a summer as a surf instructor in Waikiki, my friend from back home only surfs Kaisers/Rock Piles so I spent a lot of hours there, and I learned the skill a little further down in the Ala Moana breaks. That last sentence probably won’t mean much to a lot of people, but it does to me. I remember those times very fondly and the water will always be a special place to me.

4.) What’s your best memory so far playing for the Atlanta Hustle?

Beating the Raleigh Flyers in OT at the Silverbacks Stadium in Atlanta. It wasn’t the biggest crowd but it was a very improbable win. We ran a “Snake in the Grass” play which is kind of the equivalent of a surprise offside kick in football. It got us the disc back with a chance at a hail mary to tie the game. The last throw actually came my way but was too high for me to reach. I heard it hit the defenders behind me and my heart sank, but when I landed I saw the disc had redirected to my teammate Jay Clark for the game tying score as time expired. We carried the momentum and went on to win the game in overtime.

Raleigh was a great team and it took everything we had, plus a couple lucky breaks, to beat them but beat them we did. I sat in shock for 5-10 minutes after the game when I thought back at the sequence of events that had to happen correctly for that victory to come together. Definitely the best team win I’ve been a part of. There’s some good clips of the end of the game on YouTube.

5.) What are you looking forward to in the 2016 AUDL season?

All of it except the long, cramped van rides. I had a blast last year and am looking forward to the experience of another year in the AUDL. I like the Hustle organization a good deal; I felt they gave me a fair chance last year, which is harder to come by than you might think, and I appreciate that. We have good coaches which leads to improvement at well run practices and we have a solid group of guys in the locker room. It’s a great playing environment and I enjoy being a part of it both on and off the field.

I’m also very excited to play the Dallas Roughnecks team. They’re obviously going to be loaded with talent but I’m looking forward to the challenge. I’ve moved around and played in small ultimate markets until now and while I’ve played with/against great talent in the AUDL I haven’t had the chance to go head-to-head against the names I read about in college (Beau Kittredge, Jimmy Mickle, Dylan Freechild, etc.). I’m very much looking forward to doing so: physically I feel the best I’ve ever felt and at least in the eyes of the greater ultimate community I’m a big underdog. If I get schooled, so what? Nobody expects different. But if I don’t, and I don’t plan on it, that will make for some headlines.

I’m a player with nothing to lose and still a lot to gain. They’ve put a lot of pressure on themselves to win and I think that’s a dangerous spot to be in. I’m ready and I know the Hustle will be too.

6.) I think a lot of people root for you because you’re not the biggest guy on the field and yet can catch so many goals. How tall are you? and how much do you weigh? You got any tips for players who are not over 6 feet tall?

I don’t like discussing my metrics but let’s just say I’m small: under 5’8″ and I would likely be fighting at bantamweight.

My advice for players under 6′ tall is to be happy you found ultimate instead of basketball or volleyball. Or pretty much every other sport except wrestling or jockeying. Part of what I like about ultimate is that the playing space is so large it takes away some of the advantage of height. Speed and quickness are more valuable because on well executed sequences the disc shouldn’t float and catching a goal with the disc 3′ off the ground counts the same as catching one 10′ off the ground.

I guess what I’d say to all players, but especially shorter ones, is use your talents effectively and recognize your weak spots. If you’re short and can’t jump, try to beat people with your quickness/speed and avoid situations where you’re pitted against length in close quarters.

7.) How are you able to run so fast?

I’m fairly strong for my size and I don’t have to move a lot of weight so I think that’s a part of it. The training certainly helps too. Honestly though something just turns on when the game starts or when the disc is in the air. I love hunting down discs because I find myself in a state of focus it’s hard to achieve otherwise. There’s a clear goal with a clear metric of success, you either succeed and catch it or you fail and don’t. I wish all of life were that simple.

Also when you’re running all out there’s very little time to think everything through. I just react and the speed usually takes care of itself.

The post AsianPlayers.com: Interview with Prolific Goal-Scorer Matt Smith and His Tips for Smaller Players appeared first on Asian Players.

The Los Angeles Aviators has resigned Bryan Nguyen and Allen Lai for the 2016 AUDL season. Last season Bryan Nguyen scored 27 goals and added 12 assists in 13 games. Allen Lai also added 7 goals and 9 assists.

The post Playmakers Bryan Nguyen and Allen Lai Re-Signs with Los Angeles Aviators appeared first on Asian Players.