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Masahiro Tanaka pens goodbye to Yankees fans after Japan deal

Adam Weinrib
Adam Weinrib

Yanks Go Yard

Masahiro Tanaka #19 of the New York Yankees looks on during the second inning of the game between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees at Fenway Park on September 18, 2020 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Masahiro Tanaka said goodbye to Yankees fans on Thursday morning.

Masahiro Tanaka’s departure from the New York Yankees was a slow burn after a quick case of sticker shock.

When the bizarre, fan-less 2020 season began, many of us assumed Tanaka would be back by the time fans returned to Yankee Stadium. He felt like a lifer, and we weren’t yet adjusted to the team’s suddenly-bridled budget

But once October approached, every fan had a sense of finality. Every time Tanaka tipped his cap to a cold block of seats, he seemed to be saying goodbye to the only major-league city he’d ever known. The place where his big-league journey started in earnest, where he shook Hideki Matsui’s hand in the original dugout across the street, kickstarting a decade-long process of arriving in the Bronx himself.

In case Yankees fans still weren’t ready after months of transparent budget-crunching, Tanaka’s former-now-current team in Japan, the Rakuten Golden Eagles, announced a one-year, $7.7 million deal to bring their “hero” back home on Thursday.

And with a push of the “Tweet” button, it was time for both sides to say goodbye.

Tanaka, after weeks of hints, finally published a full and emotional farewell to his many fans in the Bronx, explaining his decision.

Of course, we all know how terrible the landscape is in Major League Baseball this offseason, and no one could blame Tanaka for heading home as a heroic conqueror, choosing to pitch for a team that fully appreciates him.

Not shockingly, Tanaka didn’t find what he was looking for in the states this offseason; his reported demand of $15 million annually was completely reasonable, yet still got scoffed at by the teams in charge.

In fact, SNY’s Andy Martino reported on Thursday that one team offered him a closer’s role. Yeah. Embarrassing.

Tanaka made the right decision for him in heading back to Japan for at least this strange bridge year, and we can possibly even reevaluate his free agency next offseason (post-lockout?) when financials balance themselves out.

It might not be goodbye for the Yankees and Tanaka; there’s a lot of love here, and we’ll cross our fingers it’s, “See you later.”

Adam Weinrib

Adam Weinrib

Adam Weinrib is a Content Director on the FanSided network, and has been the co-editor at Yanks Go Yard for 6 years. He also co-hosts The Baseball Insiders Podcast thrice weekly, alongside FanSided MLB insider Robert Murray, as well as the Yanks Go Yard Podcast. Previously, he was a Senior Editor at 12up.com, and has been covering MLB and NFL for 10 years. He was also a headline and features contributor at ClickHole and Onion Sports, as well as the Associate Producer of the ESPN 30 for 30 film "Believeland". An avowed fan of the New York sports teams -- specifically the Yankees -- as well as the North Carolina Tar Heels, you can find Adam complaining mid-game on Twitter, as well as on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn if the game goes really poorly.