Another Nippon Professional Baseball star is attempting to leap to Major League Baseball.
The Yomiuri Giants announced that the team will post Kazuma Okamoto after 11 seasons with the team, according to Yahoo News Japan. Okamoto, 29, is primarily a third baseman. In 11 seasons with the Giants, he posted a slash line of .277/.361/.521 with 248 home runs. This season, he slashed .327/.416/.598 with 15 home runs. The slugging third baseman may be a more attractive option to third-base-needy teams than Alex Bregman or Eugenio Suárez this offseason.
He missed significant time this season with an elbow injury, but when he was on the field, he was playing like a star. Since 2023, he has the second-best wRC+ in NPB, second-best OPS and ninth-best batting average. He has also proven he can perform on big stages.
In the 2023 World Baseball Classic, he hit a 407-foot home run to extend Samurai Japan’s lead in a game the team won 3-2 against Team USA. He finished the World Baseball Classic with a 1.278 OPS.
He was just 19 when he made his NPB debut, and is now looking to make an impact in MLB like other stars in recent years. Just last year, Rōki Sasaki made the jump to MLB, posting early, and is now playing a key role in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ World Series quest. Other stars like Shohei Ohtani, Seiya Suzuki, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shōta Imanaga have also been thriving in the big leagues.
While Okamoto is looking to join them, he has plenty of gratitude for the Giants and NPB. He was a six-time NPB All-Star, Central League Climax Series MVP, three-time Central League home run champion and two-time Gold Glove winner.
“I have decided to challenge the MLB using the posting system,” Okamoto said, according to Yahoo News Japan. “I would like to express my gratitude to Owner (Toshikazu) Yamaguchi, Manager (Shinnosuke) Abe, my teammates, team members, and the fans who have respected and supported this decision, as well as to the fans who always support me so warmly. Thank you.”
Okamoto is not the only NPB superstar expected to join an MLB team this offseason. The Yakult Swallows’ Munetaka Murakami is also expected to sign a deal.
Photo: Kazuma Okamoto flies out in the fourth inning of a spring training baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Tokyo, Japan, Saturday, March 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
