[packs]

Originally Posted by Rad_Hazard

The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of the Nippon Professional Baseball league of Japan have released former big leaguer Bryan LaHair, reports Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish.com (via Twitter). LaHair was transferred to the Hawks from the Cubs after the 2012 season, agreeing to a two-year, $4.7MM deal that included an opt-out provision.

LaHair had a breakout 2012 season as a 29-year-old, posting huge first-half numbers that led to an unlikely All-Star appearance. But he faded in the back half of the year, ultimately ending up with a .259/.334/.450 line for the season, including 16 home runs, over 380 plate appearances. In Japan last year, LaHair matched that tally of homers over a similar 389 plate appearances, but saw his line dip to .230/.306/.428.

Wow. An enigma in two different leagues.