Overview

• Reports indicate the Yakult Swallows’ Munetaka Murakami, Yomiuri’s Kazuma Okamoto and Seibu’s Tatsuya Imai are expected to be posted this winter, though no official postings have been announced.
• Tatsuya Imai’s 2025 line — roughly a 1.50 ERA with a mid-90s fastball touching 99 and a deep secondary mix — has prompted one front-office estimate of a contract exceeding $200 million, per ESPN reporting.
• Mets president David Stearns and Padres president A.J. Preller recently scouted in Japan, with both executives seeing Murakami and Imai, underscoring broad big-market interest.
• Industry chatter continues to link the Yankees as a serious suitor, with some analysts predicting New York or San Diego as finalists for Imai, while the Dodgers and Mariners are also cited among evaluators.
• Murakami, 25, is viewed as a transformational left-handed power bat after hitting 56 homers in 2022, while Okamoto has been a consistent corner slugger and is widely expected to be made available by Yomiuri.