Nippon Professional Baseball has seen several elite pitchers make the transition to the major leagues and find immediate success. Los Angeles Dodgers star Yoshinobu Yamamoto led his team to a World Series victory in 2025, and Chicago Cubs star Shota Imanaga competed for the Cy Young Award as a rookie in 2024.
There have been far fewer hitters making that transition successfully in recent years, but the Toronto Blue Jays are betting Kazuma Okamoto can reverse that trend after reportedly reaching a deal with the Japanese third baseman, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
It’s a four-year contract worth $60 million, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. THE the contract would apparently include no opt-out and a $5 million signing bonus for Okamoto.
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Okamoto, 29, comes to the majors after a fantastic season with the Yomiuri Giants in which he hit .327/.416/.598 with 15 home runs in 69 games. He missed time with a left elbow injury, which limited his numbers. In the seven seasons leading up to 2025, Okamoto averaged 33.1 home runs and 138.5 games played per season, so he has proven to be productive and durable.
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Okamoto, a third baseman, brings great plate approach to majors. He usually hits for a high average, with a double-digit walk rate and prodigious pop. He’s able to do all of this despite having a fairly low strikeout rate, making him a pretty complete hitter.
Some of his numbers could regress in the majors, although it’s worth noting that Okamoto set career highs on offense last season despite a declining offense overall in the NPB. Part of its excellence is due to the improvement numbers versus speedaccording to FanGraphs, an essential skill for any player arriving in MLB.
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Two things could keep Okamoto in the majors. The first is his age. He will turn 30 in June and it is safe to say that he is already in the declining phase of his career. He may only have a few seasons of high production left before his skills erode more naturally.
The second concerns the recent track record of NPB star hitters joining the majors. There hasn’t been a large sample size in recent years, with only Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki and Boston Red Sox designated hitter Masataka Yoshida. Then there’s Shohei Ohtani, of course, although it’s impossible to compare him to other players given his two-way value. While Suzuki established himself as a solid mid-order bat on a good team, Yoshida struggled to find his place in the majors.
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That said, Okamota has the experience of excelling against major league players, albeit in an incredibly small sample size. He was a force during the 2023 World Baseball Classic for Team Japan, posting a 1,278 OPS as it happens, according to MLB.com. He played a key role in Japan’s victory in the event, defeating Team USA pitcher Kyle Freeland in the championship game.
Before the start of the 2025 MLB season, Okamoto and the Yomiuri Giants faced the Cubs as Chicago prepared to open its season in Tokyo. Okamoto went 2-for-3 against the Cubs, with two RBIs and a strikeout.
With the Blue Jays, Okamoto will try to prove that success can continue across a broader sample.
