The Central League's Hanshin Tigers secured the rights to negotiate with Kindai University's slugging infielder Teruaki Sato on Monday at Nippon Professional Baseball's amateur draft.
The Pacific League's Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, meanwhile, won the rights for the other most highly sought prospect, Waseda University pitcher Takahisa Hayakawa.
The two players were each nominated as the No. 1 pick by four of the 12 NPB clubs, with Hanshin and Rakuten drawing the winning lots.