Koji Uehara 2009

It was reported yesterday that Koji Uehara will be a member of the Baltimore Orioles rotation in 2009. Uehara will be an effective major league pitcher, although certainly not a star. His main asset is excellent control. At one point in his career, for seven straight years he walked between 21 and 24 batters per year, while pitching anywhere from 131 to 207.1 innings per year. He does allow a lot of home runs though, and his strikeout rates in recents years haven't been exceptional when adjusted for the slightly lower level of competition in Japan. Pitching in the American League, I'd expect his number to be something like K/9: 6.0, BB/9: 2.0, GB%: 40%. The main risk with Uehara is that health issues could keep him from pitching effectively, as he's missed time during the past two years, while being moved from the rotation to the bullpen and back to the rotation.