Otani dominates in potential final outing in Japan

Shohei Otani made sure he left fans with a nice parting gift in what is expected to be his last start in Japan.

The 23-year-old phenom struck out 10 in a two-hit shutout, as the Nippon-Ham Fighters won their home finale by a score of 3-0.

"I wasn’t aiming for it (the shutout), I was just trying to take it one inning at a time," he said to Jason Coskrey of The Japan Times.

In front of scouts from 11 big-league clubs, Otani was consistently clocked on the radar gun at 99 mph, topping out at 101 mph. He also secured a hit as his team's designated hitter.

Chris Marrero, who spent parts of three seasons in the majors and recorded one of the two hits off of Otani, said the youngster is ready to transition to the MLB in his post-game comments.

"He throws hard," Marrero said. "He also has a good breaking ball. I think he’s going to do well in the States."

Otani, who wants to play in the big leagues and is expected to be posted, should be one of the most sought-after free agents this offseason.

During his five-year career in Japan - not including Wednesday's game - the two-way superstar owns a .287/.360/.503 slash line with 48 home runs and 166 RBIs as a hitter, alongside a 41-15 record and 2.56 ERA as a pitcher.