Monkeys' Wanner demoted; 'deregistered' instead of 'removed'

The Rakuten Monkeys have demoted foreign pitcher Max Wanner to their minor league team, a move that saw a slight discrepancy in official terminology. Manager Tseng Hao-chu initially described the move as "removing" Wanner from the active roster, akin to a Japanese Baseball Organization (NPB) practice.

However, before the game, the league officially announced Wanner's "deregistration." Simultaneously, Japanese pitcher Motoki Sakakibara was registered to the team. Tseng indicated that Sakakibara might pitch in one game during the upcoming six-game series, as the team prepares for a busy schedule.

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For now, we will 'remove' Max Wanner, which is like removing him from the active roster in Japan's NPB, just sending him down to the minor league team first.

The Monkeys were initially set for two consecutive weeks of six-game series, but a postponement reduced this week's schedule to five games. Tseng confirmed the pitching rotation for the upcoming week, naming Williander, Eppler, Moerman, Chen Ke-yi, and Tseng Chia-hui as starters. Lin Tzu-wei will continue in a relief capacity and will not be shifted to a starting role.

For the current game, Liu Chia-hsiang is slated to start. Regardless of his performance, he will be sent back to the minor league team afterward as planned. The team will also register Li Po-yu, who was recently signed on June 20. Tseng noted Li's good performance in the minor league, where he has 16 relief appearances and three saves over 13.2 innings with a 3.29 ERA this season, and expressed interest in seeing him pitch in a major league game.

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The team's pitchers are all arranged. Williander, Eppler, Moerman, Chen Ke-yi, and Tseng Chia-hui will be in the rotation. Lin Tzu-wei's role will remain as a reliever; he will not be converted to a starter.