27-Year-Old Japanese Starter to Be Let Loose to Pursue MLB Dream
International free agency can only heat up from here. Before the dust has settled on the news of Munetaka Murakami’s posting, there is another gust of excitement to shake the MLB world. Though the move was predicted, Tatsuya Imai, the 27-year-old starter of the Saitama Seibu Lions, will be posted and available to take offers from all 30 MLB teams this offseason. He joins an already impressive class of international free agents headlined by Murakami, Kazuma Okamoto, and Sung Mun Song. The 27-year-old might be one of the steadiest or stable investments teams can make on the international free agent market.
Imai was a member of the Lions for all eight years of his NPB career. His numbers indicate consistency and stability over the last three seasons. In 2023, he produced 12 wins and six losses, a superb 2.45 earned run average, and 161 strikeouts over the course of 158 innings. Imai followed it up with 10 wins and eight losses, a wonderful 2.34 earned run average to go with 187 strikeouts and over 173 innings under his belt. The 27-year-old was simply dominant during the 2025 campaign, gathering 10 wins and five losses, a sparkling 1.92 earned run average, and 178 strikeouts through nearly 164 innings pitched.
As the top pitching arm making the transition across the Pacific, there will be several teams looking to help him achieve his MLB dream and present him with the best opportunity at the big-league level. An intriguing case would be the Chicago Cubs. In years past, they had success bringing in Japanese talent, such as Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga. The recent news of Imanaga declining his player option to become a free agent has raised some questions about the future of the Cubs’ rotation, both in the immediate term as well as a little bit further down the line. Justin Steele will still be rehabbing from elbow surgery in the early part of the 2026 season, leaving 2025 NL Rookie of the Year finalist Cade Horton to do the heavy lifting along with veterans Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon, and Colin Rea. Boyd and Taillon are scheduled to hit the free agent market at the end of the season while Rea’s fate dwindles on a team option. If Imanaga leaves now, would they reinvest in another overseas talent like Imai? As a team coming off a first-round playoff exit, more stability in the rotation would be a welcome sight.
