Gomez

Gomez has officially joined the Tigers after the birth of his new child. At least this time Tigers waited and allowed him to stay behind until his daughter was better unlike Bass. Gomez has been allocated No. 5 and is intended to bat No. 4 and field at first base. Comments are invited from those who know his abilities. As far as Tigers fans in Japan are concerned - he could fail as so many of the Tigers batting selections have or he could succeed though the record suggests the former.

Not very optimistic, are we?

Given the success rate of Tigers in choosing foreign power hitters direct from America I think optimism would be misplaced.

Your pessimism is well founded. Hits for power but strikes out a lot. Below average speed on the base paths and below average defensively. Had a couple of good years in triple A but never made an impact in the majors. A highly unremarkable career so I'm surprised he showed up on Hanshin's radar or maybe it's not surprising given Hanshin's history of foreign signings.