The best home run king in the history of the Japanese professional baseball (NPB) will cross the Pacific Ocean after next season.
Japanese version of Yahoo Sports reported on the 3rd (Korea time) that third baseman Murakami Munetaka of Yakult Swallows officially announced that he will enter the major leagues in 2026.
MLB.com said, “According to Yahoo Sports Japan, Murakami will be his last season in the NPB next year, and after that, he will sign with an MLB team,” adding, “NPB players have to play nine years to become a full FA without any restrictions, and Murakami will have to play eight years after completing next season to get approval from the Yakult club and go through the posting process.”
Murakami, who was born in February 2000 and posted in November or December 2025, can sign a Major League contract unlike Chiba Lotte Marines Sasaki, who is seeking to advance to the Major League this winter. As Sasaki is under 25 years old, he has to sign a minor league contract as an international amateur free agent that receives a down payment from the full range of international Sining Bonus.
In other words, Murakami is not subject to the international Sinning Bonus pool and can freely negotiate the ransom as a general Major League 토토사이트 꽁머니 FA. The highest contract for a Japanese player is $325 million for 12 years, signed by Yoshinobu Yamamoto with the Los Angeles Dodgers in December last year, and among the batters, outfielder Masataka Yoshida, who joined the Boston Red Sox through posting in December 2022, is the highest record for five years and $90 million.
Throughout professional baseball between Korea and Japan, San Francisco Giants Lee Jung-hoo signed a six-year, $113 million contract in December last year is the highest for batters, and Murakami is likely to break Yoshida as well as Lee Jung-hoo’s ransom record.
MLB.com said, “Despite his young age, Murakami recorded 224 home runs, 600 RBIs and an OPS of 0.945 in 836 NPB games. In 2021 and 2022, he was named Central League MVP, and in 2022, he won the batter’s triple crown with a batting average of 0.318, 56 home runs and 134 RBIs. In particular, 56 home runs are the most home runs in a single season for an NPB player, surpassing the 55 home runs hit by NPB legend Sadaharu Oh in 1964.”
However, Murakami’s batting average of 0.256, 31 homers, 76 RBIs, and OPS of 0.875 in 2023 fell significantly compared to the previous season, and he played 143 games this season, failing to turn around with a batting average of 0.244, 33 homers, 82 RBIs, and an OPS of 0.80.
However, MLB.com praised Murakami’s slugging power, saying, “Although his productivity was not as explosive as the previous two years, he has conquered the 30-home run mark for the last two consecutive years.”