SPORTS UPDATE
The Tokyo Yakult Swallows will official post slugging third baseman Munetaka Murakami for MLB teams on Friday, reports ESPN. His 45-day negotiating window opens at 8 a.m. ET on Saturday and will close at 5 p.m. ET on Monday, Dec. 22. Murakami can sign at any time between those two dates.
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R.J. Anderson
Because he is 25, Murakami is free to sign a contract of any size this offseason, similar to Yoshinobu Yamamoto two years ago. He is not subject to the international bonus pools like Roki Sasaki last offseason. We ranked Murakami as the seventh-best free agent available this winter. Here’s the write-up:
Murakami launched his name into orbit back in 2022, when he homered 56 times to break Sadaharu Oh’s single-season Nippon Professional Baseball record for a Japanese-born player. Clearly he has elite strength. Alas, the ensuing years haven’t been as kind. He swings and misses a ton, even within the zone, and his strikeout rate has cleared 28% three seasons in a row — NPB hasn’t experienced the same K-rate creep as MLB, making that one of the worst marks among regulars. There’ve long been questions about his viability at the hot corner too, with first base appearing as his long-term home. Murakami’s power and youth (he’ll turn 26 in February) will go a long way in making a team forgive those blemishes, with a left-handed Eugenio Suárez serving as a good outcome here.
In 69 games around elbow surgery and an oblique injury, Murakami hit .286/.392/.659 with 24 home runs this season. Those 24 home runs were third most in the league even though Murakami finished 135th in games played. Offense is way down in NPB right now — the league average was .242/.302/.350 in 2025 — making Murakami’s power stand out even more.
Whichever team signs Murakami will owe the Swallows a posting fee based on the size of his contract. Here is the posting fee structure:
- Contract worth less than $25 million: 20% of contract value
- Contract worth $25 million to $50 million: $5 million plus 17.5% of amount over $25 million
- Contract worth more than $50 million: $9.275 million plus 15% of amount over $50 million
Our R.J. Anderson projected Murakami to receive a six-year, $140 million contract. That would come with a $22.775 million posting fee, making it $162.775 million all-in. The richest contract given to a Japanese position player coming over to MLB is the five-year, $90 million deal the Red Sox gave Masataka Yoshida three years ago. Murakami should easily beat that.
The teams that show the most interest in Murakami figure to be the teams that most believe in him at third base. His free agency could have a domino effect on Alex Bregman and Eugenio Suárez, and perhaps Pete Alonso too. The fairly early posting window ensures Murakami’s free agency will be over in December and not drag into January, which could have really slowed things down.
All the usual suspects are expected to pursue Murakami: DodgersMetsYankeesetc. The Blue JaysCubsGiantsMarinersParentsRangersand Tigers should not be ruled out either.
