Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about what went down at MLB’s non-tender deadline, touching on whether the news for arbitration-eligible players was as dire as forecasted, the more notable non-tenders, and the short- and long-term futures of free agency, then (29:36) talk to Jason Coskrey of The Japan Times about how the NPB’s Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks have built a dynasty that has won four consecutive Japan Series titles (and seven since 2011), how the Hawks have influenced the rest of the league, the MLB futures of Oscar Luis Colas (the “Cuban Ohtani”) and ace Tomoyuki Sugano, the strength of women’s baseball in Japan, how the NPB dealt with the pandemic, and whether more foreign players may want to play in Japan.

Audio intro: The Mountain Goats, “High Hawk Season“
Audio interstitial: Superchunk, “Hello Hawk“
Audio outro: Shovels & Rope, “The Last Hawk“