The Role and Reality of the Farm
NPB's farm (second team) exists mainly to develop young players and to rehabilitate first-team players. In reality, however, quite a few players stay on the farm for a long time, with only time passing by and no prospect of promotion to the first team. In NPB, each club can register up to 70 players under control (active roster registration), while the first-team roster limit is 31 (as of 2026). The remaining roughly 40 play on the farm, and among them are players who are effectively surplus to the team's plans but stay on because their contracts remain. This state is called "warehousing", and it is a serious problem for a player's career.
The Merits and Faults of the Development Player System
The development player system, introduced in 2005, is a mechanism that lets clubs hold players outside the active roster registration limit at low cost. The minimum salary for development players is 2.3 million yen a year, far below the 4.2 million yen for registered players (both before tax, under the Japanese Professional Baseball Agreement and the development player regulations as of 2026). The system has produced success stories such as SoftBank's Kodai Senga, who climbed up from development player status to become an ace. On the other hand, critics have also pointed to the problem of clubs hoarding large numbers of development players and securing talent in a "fire enough shots and some will hit" manner. SoftBank held 40 development players as of 2026, the most among the 12 clubs (the next is Yomiuri with 33, while the other 10 clubs have 7 to 22). Many of them leave the club without ever gaining active roster registration. Holding a large number of development players is meant to create a competitive environment.
Environmental Problems on the Farm
Training conditions and treatment on the farm differ greatly from those on the first team. Second-team games draw almost no spectators, and the ballpark facilities are basic. Road trips are mainly by bus, and players stay at different accommodations from the first team. The quality and quantity of meals also differ, and in some cases this affects how young players build their bodies. The quality of farm coaches also varies. Instructors who achieved results with the first team are not necessarily assigned to the farm, and in some cases coaches without specialist knowledge of player development do the teaching. Improving the farm environment is an essential task for raising the player development capacity of NPB as a whole.
Reform Efforts and the Third-Team System
Reforms to solve the farm's problems are also under way. In 2011, ahead of the rest of Japanese professional baseball, SoftBank introduced a third-team system, setting up a structure that gives more players game experience. The third team plays mainly practice games against independent league teams and corporate (shakaijin, company-sponsored amateur) teams, and functions as a preparatory stage for moving up to the second team. In addition, new clubs (Kufu Hayate Ventures Shizuoka and Oisix Niigata Albirex BC) joined the farm from 2024, bringing the Western League to 6 clubs and the Eastern League to 8 and widening the range of opponents. To prevent the "warehousing" of players, it is necessary both to improve the farm environment and to build a system that lets players move on to their next career at the right time. Debate over the problem of player "warehousing" will likely continue as a structural issue for NPB.
The Psychological Impact of Long Years on the Second Team and Second Careers
The psychological burden carried by players who stay on the farm for a long time is a problem that is hard to see from outside. A life of going through daily practices and games with no prospect of promotion to the first team makes it extremely difficult to stay motivated. Remaining on the second team while watching players who joined in the same year succeed on the first team can severely damage a player's self-esteem. In NPB's published survey of the career paths of released and retired players, the average age of the 169 players covered in 2025 was 27.2, and life after retirement lasts for decades. However, players who spent their young years on the farm have often missed the chance to gain an education or job skills. The Japan Professional Baseball Players Association works on second-career support through its "Fantomo Project", but it is hard to say that enough support reaches every player who leaves a club. The problem of clubs keeping hold of players affects not only their playing years but also how they plan their lives after retirement.
Independent Leagues as a Safety Net and the Road Back to NPB
For players released by NPB clubs, independent leagues have become an important safety net for continuing to play and aiming for a return to NPB. Independent leagues such as the Shikoku Island League Plus and the Route Inn BC League give game experience to players no longer under NPB control and create chances to catch the eye of NPB scouts again. There are several examples of players who returned to NPB, or entered NPB for the first time, from an independent league, and Katsuki Matayoshi (Chunichi Dragons) and Katsuya Kakunaka (Chiba Lotte Marines) are representative examples. Independent leagues give a second chance to players who could not get opportunities on NPB farm teams, and they can also act as a deterrent against excessive player hoarding by NPB clubs. However, the financial base of independent leagues is fragile, and player treatment can be even harsher than on NPB farm teams. For independent leagues to keep functioning as a safety net, stabilizing the leagues' own finances is an essential task.