"The Seibu Lions have agreed to post right-hander Kona Takahashi for Major League teams this winter, according to a report from Nikkai Sports. Takahashi turns 29 in February, and he has a 2.95 ERA, 13.8% strikeout rate, and 6.9% walk rate over 116 innings and 19 starts for the Lions this season, which is his 11th campaign in Nippon Professional Baseball."
"Once an NPB player is posted, he has 45 days to work out a deal with a Major League club. If no deal is reached, the player returns to his Nippon Professional Baseball club for the next season and can't be posted again until the following winter. If a deal is reached, the player's original NPB club earns a posting fee depending on the size of his MLB contract."
"Takahashi first expressed an interest in coming to MLB after his big 2022 campaign, and though he has appeared in each of the last 11 NPB seasons, he still hasn't amassed the full nine years of service time necessary for full free agency. The Lions have nevertheless agreed to let Takahashi search for a Major League team a bit early, and landing a contract would allow the Lions to gain some money via a posting fee."
Seibu Lions agreed to post right-hander Kona Takahashi for Major League teams, allowing him to pursue an MLB contract. Takahashi, turning 29 in February, posted a 2.95 ERA with a 13.8% strikeout rate and 6.9% walk rate over 116 innings and 19 starts in his 11th Nippon Professional Baseball season. The performance marks a bounce-back after a 3.87 ERA and 0-11 record in 2024 that followed a velocity drop and a stint in the Japanese minors after stronger 2022-23 results. Posting initiates a 45-day negotiation window and activates posting-fee rules tied to the size and type of any MLB contract, making a lower-range deal most likely.
Read at MLB Trade Rumors
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