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The story
High school pitcher Shoki Oda was picked by the Yomiuri Giants in the draft, but with an MLB run reportedly on his mind, he still hasn’t contacted the team to formally decline — and that’s become a hot topic on 5ch. On why he won’t just make his intentions clear, some posters speculate he might keep the Giants as a fallback depending on how MLB talks go, while others argue that if he truly means to turn the team down, he should say so quickly. Still others push back, pointing out that the Giants are the ones who drafted him without asking, so demanding “manners” from the player misses the point — leaving the thread split over who’s actually being unreasonable here.
What people said
So basically, depending on how the MLB meetings go, he might just use the Giants as a seat-warmer gig?
All the more reason to decline now, no?
That is, if he's truly done with the idea of joining the Giants
If they're not on his radar, he could've just declined in the interview on draft day itself
'Not on his radar' means they don't even register with him
Basically everything's getting put on the back burner
He doesn't have time to deal with this stuff either
You seem like the type who's bad at your job
In that case sending the decline notice is exactly what would stop them from pestering him — just do it already, are you dumb?
Not even clear he could cut it in NPB to begin with
He's barely better than Kazama Kyuda (another mediocre prospect)
Even scouts over there are saying he's not really a 'prospect'
What exactly are the Dentsu people (his ad-agency handlers) misunderstanding here
Lately that's about a once-every-three-years kind of talent, yeah
It's not even a Major League contract — he'd be starting in Single-A or Rookie ball
His English isn't even reliably good
He'd be better off toughening up in NPB first
Do you make your own life decisions based on whatever other people tell you? Sounds like you probably do lol
He probably doesn't even picture himself starting from that level
He said something like 'It's not that I'm a huge fan, but the team I see most on TV is the Dodgers' — then went and followed the Dodgers on Instagram
He's that level of bandwagon MLB fan, flaunting his 'Dodgers love' on Instagram, and now that they've noticed him he probably thinks that's just where he gets to play
Oda, in his own words:
'I'd rather be the best in the world than just do well in Japan'
^ For some reason he's already talking like he's a Dodger
then get mad that he won't decline
what is that
are they just serial complainers?
You can't expect common sense out of Giants fanboys (mocked here as 'Kyo-kasu')
LOL that's way too on point
In that case he shouldn't have submitted the draft-entry form in the first place
Without submitting the draft-entry form he couldn't even negotiate with MLB teams…
You should probably just bow out of this one…
Re: #53
He could just try his luck after he graduates high school, simple as that
It's kind of scary how these guys actually seem to mean what they're saying
Matsui's really not that big of a draw these days, is he
That's exactly the kind of thinking you'd expect from a NanJ poster (regular of this very board) lol
does he even need to bother declining?
I get calls too, pitching internet plans or offering to buy my old junk, and I just hang up without saying a word
Manners matter in a closed little world like this
If he ever wants to come back, there are only 12 teams (NPB clubs) to choose from
It's the Giants who were rude and caused the trouble by drafting him without asking
That's exactly why players keep passing them over in free agency
A scam artist lecturing about manners (literally an 'atariya' — someone who stages accidents for money) — what is this? That's basically a hit-and-run
Once the deadline passes, the negotiating rights just expire — there's zero downside for Oda
He'd be burning his bridges with any team that might take him in in Japan
The Giants, who aren't even trying to negotiate, have their own share of the blame here
Maybe Matsui already warned everyone off — he did say he wants to respect the player's own wishes, so it doesn't sound like he'll go full Kuriyama and try to talk him out of it (like Kuriyama did with Ohtani)
I'm curious whether the best player from that year's Koshien tournament can really go straight to America and make it to the majors
The improved minor-league conditions mainly just mean the low-paid Dominican guys can finally afford to eat properly
which I'd think actually shrinks whatever advantage Oda's fat signing bonus gives him
It's just like raising something in a toilet bowl (slang for a bare-bones, neglect-it-and-see setup)
They give you the bare minimum conditions
No coaching
Only the ones who claw their way up on their own
get to move up a stage
That's why nobody teaches you any pro know-how there
You have to compete with nothing but what you already knew in high school
Is he really that good?
From the videos, he looks like just an everyday pitcher you'd find anywhere
He's maybe a hair better than Kazama
Honestly if he'd just entered the regular draft, probably only two teams or so would've competed for him
So I don't get why he's so set on going straight to America
Good chance he gets stuck in Single-A
Someone's clearly pulling strings behind the scenes
In that case the Giants look like idiots — either taking on the risk of being rejected, or burning a precious first-round pick on some secret backroom deal, all for a player like this
Background and Key Points of the Debate
An NPB draft pick only grants a club “negotiating rights” over a player — it carries no power to force them to sign. Since a player can’t even negotiate with MLB teams without first submitting the official draft-entry form, Oda holding off on a formal decline is, technically, a legitimate move within the rules of the system. In the thread, posters voiced both discomfort at how long he’s taking to signal a refusal and skepticism toward a team that drafted him without ever consulting him in the first place — leaving it unclear who’s really being “unreasonable” here. Views on his talent were similarly split: some took a harsh line based on his Koshien outings, arguing he doesn’t measure up to a typical top draft pick, while others ranked him among the best of his age group — so where his true ability lands remains an open question. The thread also raised some unverified claims about his family background, but since those couldn’t be confirmed, this article leaves them out.
※This article is an excerpt and summary of the 5ch (Nanmo Jikkyo G) thread “[Mystery] The reason Shoki Oda still hasn’t told the Giants he’s declining lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol.”
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