Yankees will forget all about Munetaka Murakami as next Japanese target demolishes NPB

When Brian Cashman declared that it had been "too many years" since the New York Yankees had a Japanese star last November, visions of the long-rumored Munetaka Murakami arrival in pinstripes danced in fans' heads. If Murakami's high-strikeout game wasn't your cup of tea, then you imagined Tatsuya Imai filling the Yankees' vacant rotation spot. For the contrarians, there was Kazuma Okamoto, rounding out the most star-studded class of NPB defectors in some time.

Imai went to Houston on a deal that looks like it will blow up in the Astros' faces one way or another. Murakami is blasting homers at a rate that only Aaron Judge can keep pace with, leading fans to dream once more that he could bring his powerful lefty swing to the Bronx in two years when his contract expires. Okamoto has been heating up after a cold start.

With all of that said, the real target the Yankees should chase isn't one of these guys down the road. Instead, they should have their eyes peeled on the NPB's hottest hitter so far in 2026, Teruaki Sato.

Through May 5, Sato's 291 OPS+ was 90 points higher than the next closest hitter in Nippon Professional Baseball. That's after the 27-year-old posted a .277/.345/.579 line with 40 dingers last season. He represented Team Japan in this year's World Baseball Classic, slashing .300/.417/.600 over 12 plate appearances. His most up-to-date line this season is .385/.458/.770 with nine homers through 33 games.

Outside of the spectacular slash lines, here's why New York should be excited about the rising Japanese star. His primary position is third base, and while he's likely not a Gold Glover over there, he is a real third baseman, unlike Murakami. He's also a left-handed bat that could feast on Yankee Stadium's short porch. Most importantly, he's expected to be posted this offseason.

NPB star Teruaki Sato should be the player to break the Yankees' streak of striking out in Japan

Sato has an impressive resume that includes winning the Central League MVP last season, in addition to being an All-Star selection in four of his five NPB seasons. He's also gotten better pretty much every season, dropping his strikeout rate from 27.3% last season to 23.9% this year. The same holds true with the glove, as his error total at the hot corner has declined from 23 in 2024 to just six in 2025, though he has made five blunders so far this season.

Despite Cashman's desires to dive back into the Japanese market this past winter, that was never likely to happen given the turmoil in the international scouting department. Donny Rowland was shown the door after 15 years as New York's director of international scouting. In the wake of his departure, some unseemly rumblings came to the surface.

Stepping into his stead is Mario Garza, and one of Garza's first moves was to add Matt Slater and, shortly thereafter, Nao Masamoto, two men with deep ties to the Asian baseball scene, to the staff.

Masamoto, in particular, could help the Yankees' cause. He was instrumental in Shōta Imanaga and Seiya Suzuki choosing the Chicago Cubs, despite the Windy City not being one of the prime West Coast destinations favored by NPB superstars. He also worked with Team Japan during the WBC, giving him some familiarity with Sato.

Third base has been a sore spot for the Yankees for some time, and while Ryan McMahon's bat has come alive a bit of late, he's still hard to trust. He is under contract next year for $16 million, which could be a potential road block, but Sato might be too tantalizing to pass up.

Sato just turned 27 on March 13, meaning he'll be 28 for the entirety of the 2027 campaign. Getting a power-hitting lefty bat who has shown nothing but improvement over the years at the hot corner should be an enticing proposition, and him coming over in his prime could finally lead the Yankees to solving the third base conundrum for years to come.

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