Veteran right-hander Masahiro Tanaka has reached an agreement with the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball, per a report from Yahoo Japan (h/t to Yakyu Cosmopolitan). The terms of the deal are not yet clear, but it appears he’ll be joining a new NPB team for the first time in his lengthy career.
Tanaka, 36, has enjoyed a long and successful career between NPB and MLB. He made his debut with the Rakuten Golden Eagles at the age of 18 back in 2007, and after seven dominant seasons in NPB was posted for MLB clubs prior to the 2014 season. The right-hander instantly became one of the most sought-after players on the free agent market before eventually signing with the Yankees on a seven-year, $155MM deal. In 20 starts with New York during his first season in the majors, Tanaka posted an excellent 2.77 ERA (138 ERA+) with a 3.04 FIP en route to an All-Star appearance and a fifth-place finish in AL Rookie of the Year voting.
Impressive as that debut season in the big leagues was, Tanaka eventually settled in as more of a solid mid-rotation arm with the Yankees than as a true ace. In his seven seasons with the club, the right-hander pitched to a 3.74 ERA (114 ERA+) with a 3.91 FIP in 1054 1/3 innings as a big leaguer. He made his second and final MLB All-Star appearance in 2019, and pitched to a solid 3.33 ERA in 54 postseason innings for the Yankees during his tenure with the club. His final year with the Yankees was abbreviated due to the 60-game pandemic-shortened campaign that took place in 2020, but Tanaka look solid in ten starts with a 3.56 ERA in 48 innings of work that stood as his best mark since 2016.
When he hit the free agent market ahead of his age-32 season, Tanaka was among the most well-regarded pitchers in the class. MLBTR ranked Tanaka as the #10 free agent in the class on that year’s edition of our Top 50 MLB Free Agents list, and the righty appeared to be a lock to remain in the majors as a quality mid-rotation veteran. As free agency played out, however, the Yankees turned their attention to retaining second baseman DJ LeMahieu. While Tanaka garnered at least some interest from other MLB clubs, he ultimately headed back home to Japan to pitch for Rakuten once again. At the time, Tanaka noted that his preference if he returned to Japan was a return to the Golden Eagles, though he also suggested he would be open to a deal with the Yomiuri Giants.
As it happens, it now appears he’ll be playing for the Giants after all, albeit only after a four-year pit stop with his original team. Tanaka’s second stint with Rakuten did not go quite as well as his first. He pitched to a 3.73 ERA in 463 innings of work in Pacific League play over the past four seasons, though he struck out just 17.5% of opponents in that time. That’s a far cry from the 27.8% clip he struck out opponents at for the Golden Eagles back in 2011, and it’s even several steps back from the career 23.1% strikeout rate that Tanaka posted during his seven seasons in the majors.
Despite those declining numbers, it appears that Yomiuri is willing to take a chance on the right-hander as their own longtime veteran, Tomoyuki Sugano, explores a possible jump to the major leagues. Tanaka made just one start for Rakuten’s Pacific League team in 2024, but he’s surely hoping to make more than that next season with his new club. The right-hander has gathered 197 career wins between NPB and MLB play to this point in his career, leaving him just three wins shy of a major milestone.
Yankee Clipper
Come back, Tanaka!
CravenMoorehead
I just grimaced being reminded how the Yankees didn’t bring back Tanaka at the time because they needed to pay for LeMahieu.
*SWIGS OLDE ENGLISH 800 40oz and stares at the ground in disgust*
Yankee Clipper
Pour one out for the homies, man….. ugh
sad tormented neglected mariners fan
God lemahieu did absolutely nothing after that contract
It’s hard to think he was one of the best hitters on the planet from 2019-2020
KnicksFanCavsFan
I thought it has something to do with some rude comments sometime directed towards him, his wife and baby during the Asian hate being directed to them because of covid?
Frankie Bani
Should be better than Rondón
Blue Baron
*RODON. Baseball Reference is your friend. Use it.
Dumpster Divin Theo
No wonder they’re starting pitching sprung a leak. They signed Rondon by mistake
Dumpster Divin Theo
Wait now which one the thinker, and which one kaiju that terrorized Tokyo bay?
sad tormented neglected mariners fan
Yankees signed rendon? As in Anthony rendon
He would’ve been a classic Yankees move then and now for no reason
BaseballClassic1985
Tanaka was a good pitcher with the Yanks. Threw some gems in the playoffs,too.
CravenMoorehead
He wasn’t appreciated enough just like Kuroda.
Perksy
I forgot about Kuroda, he was solid too
dasit
i swear kuroda must have the lowest career run support in history the yankees never scored for him
JayRyder
:) Man did I almost read that wrong. Sorry G’s
Canuckleball
It’s remarkable that he hasn’t played in MLB since 2020 yet he only just turned 36. Thought he would have been 40 by now.
dugmet
Remember when NYY consistently signed top Japanese talent?
tom brunanskys black sock
@dogmeat
Remember when chilis would fill your frosty mug w miller lite to
The brim?
Bart Harley Jarvis
Pepperidge Farm remembers…
CravenMoorehead
Remember when Burger King had those delicious tenders before they decided to serve people “nuggets” that taste like deer ankles?
Yanksfan1030
You mean like hideki irabu and kei igawa?
Dumpster Divin Theo
Remember when airplane pilots would reminisce about Gladiator movies
differentbears
“‘Remember when’ is the lowest form of conversation.”
– Tony Soprano
The biggest tr0ll
Why did I think this guy was much older?
Frankie Bani
Bartolo Colón is back
damancash
#19
Class act, wore the pinstripes in the way a true Yankee is meant to.
His hard work, reliability, and commitment to excellence earned him well deserved respect from teammates and opponents alike.
Today’s Major League players should strive to be looked at in the way Tanaka is now still viewed years after leaving MLB.
Oh yeah, one more thing he was a pretty damn good pitcher too.
Acoss1331
Tanaka is a stud, Yankees dropped the ball with him.
sad tormented neglected mariners fan
He’s the only player right now I can think of that prefers to play at a lower league despite having enough talent to play in the bigs
I guess there’s Hyun Jin ryu too but he fell off
Yasiel puig could’ve probably still been good but he was exiled (for good reason)
The McNasty1
Older Tanaka is better than anything the Yankees currently have.which includes overrated and overpaid Fried and ‘too good to cover first base in the World Series’ Cole.
damancash
you forgot ” I’m sorry 760 million just isn’t enough” ” are you kidding I’m not paying for a Luxury Box” ” I want to win, as long as I get everything I want ” soto
I know he’s not a pitcher but I figured what the heck
The McNasty1
Yankees are yesterdays news along with their tradition, aura, and mystique
bcjd
What an excellent career he has had! Consistent excellence for an extended period.
Tigersin2050
Rare is the day I read a post about an ex-Yank and it’s all positive reviews. People seemed to like him there a lot.
Dumpster Divin Theo
Good dude, good stuff. Hope to see him back as an MLB ambassador
TellItGoodbye
Just hoping Corbin Burnes doesn’t get confused and sign with the wrong Giants.
dasit
first 14 mlb starts before the partial ucl tear
11-1
1.99 era
9+ k/9
miss you masa!
bestone
Munenori Kawasaki….where are you?….Toronto could use your experience….
BronxBombers23
Masa! He always delivered in big games/in the playoffs!
kiwimlbfan
Yomiuri Giants lost in the finals of the Pacific League to the eventual Nippon champs, so it’s a good team
Non Roster Invitee
Tanaka’s last year in Japan before joining the Yankees….24-0 1.27!