Masahiro Tanaka will soon be coming to Major League Baseball after a stellar career in Japan.
On Tuesday evening, Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times tweeted that two Japanese news outlets (Sponichi and Nikkan Sports) are reporting that the Rakuten Golden Eagles will post Tanaka and allow him to make the jump to the MLB for the 2014 season.
To negotiate a contract with Tanaka, teams must first meet the posting fee of $20 million, but only the team that successfully signs him will be responsible for this fee. The list of teams that will pursue the 25-year-old starting pitcher is expected to be a long one, and should include some of the wealthiest clubs in the sport.
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Tanaka went 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA, 183 strikeouts and 32 walks in 212 innings for Rakuten in Nippon Professional Baseball in 2013. He’s projected to be a top-of-the-rotation pitcher for an MLB staff.
