NPB Postings Give Texas Rangers More Free Agency Options

Yoshinobu Yamamoto leads three Japanese pitchers that are now on the MLB free-agent market.

The Texas Rangers have more options to explore in free agency, thanks to three pitchers that have been posted by Nippon Professional Baseball.

Shota Imanaga, who plays for the Yokohama BayStars, and Naoyuki Uwasawa, who plays for the Nippon-Ham Fighters, were posted on Monday, which gives all 30 MLB teams a 45-day window to negotiate.

This come a week after the Orix Buffaloes posted Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who is considered the biggest star of the three pitchers.

Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto has already begun negotiating with MLB clubs / © Yukihito Taguchi-USA TODAY Sports

Because Yamamoto was posted a week ago, his deadline to sign a deal is Jan. 4. Imanaga and Uwasawa have a deadline of Jan. 11.

Yamamoto’s negotiations are already underway. This week, he and his representatives are meeting via Zoom or phone with anywhere from 11-14 teams that expressed initial interest after his posting.

Yamamoto will then come to the U.S. and meet with finalists after the winter meetings are complete on Dec. 4-7.

Yamamoto is a 25-year-old right-hander with a career record of 70-29. In 2023, he had a 1.21 ERA, a 16-6 record and 169 strikeouts in 164 innings. He threw his second career no-hitter earlier this season. He is expected to land a contract in excess of $200 million.

Imanaga, a 30-year-old left-hander, has a 2.79 ERA, with a 26.2 percent strikeout rate and a 5.9 percent walk rate since the start of the 2019 season.

In 2023, he struck out nearly 30 percent of the hitters he faced in 148 innings, as he posted a 2.80 ERA. He walked just 3.8 percent of the hitters he faced.

MLB Trade Rumors projects that Imanaga could get a five-year deal valued at $85 million.

Uwasawa, a right-hander who will turn 30 in January, has a 19.7 percent strikeout rate for his career. He has a solid walk rate (7.5 percent) and is coming off a 2023 in which he had a 2.96 ERA in 170 innings and walked just 5.9 percent of the hitters he faced.

He’s thrown more than 1,000 innings and has a career ERA of 3.19.

One more player from Asia will be posted in December.

Outfielder Jung Hoo Lee, who plays for the Kiwoom Heroes in Korean Professional Baseball, should be posted then. Teams will have 30 days to sign him once he’s posted.

Lee has played in the KBO since he was 18 years old. He spent two years with Nexen before joining Kiwoom. He’s been an incredibly consistent hitter in the KBO, batting over .300 in each of his seven seasons and has a lifetime batting average of .340. He also has a .992 fielding percentage.

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