Japanese right-hander, Tatsuya Imai, signed a three-year, $54 million contract with the Houston Astros, journalist Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported this Thursday.
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According to Chandler Rome of The Athletic, the deal could reach $63M, thanks to increases in innings released. In turn, Imai has exit options in each of the contract’s campaigns.
Now, the average annual salary of $18M will be the third largest among Japanese pitchers, behind only Yoshinobu Yamamoto with the Dodgers and Masahiro Tanaka with the Yankees.
Notably, he could earn $3M incentives if he pitches at least 100 innings in 2026; If so, the base salary for both 2027 and 2028 will become $21 million. So you’re guaranteed $54 million, but it could actually be $42 million for two years or $63 million for three years.
Imai was released by his club in Japan, the Saitama Seibu Lions, on November 19, opening a 45-day window for MLB teams to negotiate a contract with him.
MLB.com
