MLB Rumors: Tomoyuki Sugano Intends to Leave Japan, Sign Contract in 2024 Free Agency

Two-time Central League MVP Tomoyuki Sugano is leaving the Yomiuri Giants with the intention of signing with an MLB team this offseason.

Per ESPN's Jeff Passan, Sugano intends to become an international free agent after a terrific rebound season for the Giants in 2024.

Sugano joins a list of free-agent pitchers that includes Corbin Burnes, Yusei Kikuchi, Max Fried, Jack Flaherty, Andrew Heaney, Shane Bieber, Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. Blake Snell, Gerrit Cole, Nathan Eovaldi and Jordan Montgomery all have options that could make them available.

The potential crown jewel of the market is another NPB superstar, Roki Sasaki. The 22-year-old is expected to request the Chiba Lotte Marines post him this offseason, but the situation is complicated by MLB's posting system.

Rules dictate that players who are under the age of 25 when they get posted are subject to international bonus pool restrictions, which is how the Los Angeles Angels signed Shohei Ohtani for a $2.3 million signing bonus plus the $20 million posting fee in December 2017.

If the Marines wait until after the 2026 season when Sasaki is 25 to post him, they would stand to make significantly more money because the signing team owes a percentage of the contract given to a player to the posting team.

For example, the Los Angeles Dodgers paid the Orix Buffaloes around $50 million on top of the 12-year, $325 million contract that Yoshinobu Yamamoto signed last offseason.

Sugano, who will turn 35 on Oct. 11, is one of the most accomplished pitchers in the history of Nippon Professional Baseball. He was drafted in 2012 and made his debut the following year, earning the first of seven straight All-Star selections as a rookie.

The right-hander won his first MVP award as a 24-year-old in 2014. He finished with a 12-5 record 2.33 ERA in 23 Central League starts.

Sugano won back-to-back Eiji Sawamura Awards given to the best starting pitcher in all of NPB in 2017 and 2018. He finished a combined 32-13 with a 2.52 ERA and 371 strikeouts in 389.1 innings during those two seasons.

The 2020 season saw Sugano earn his second Central League MVP award with a 1.97 ERA in 20 games. He had ERAs above 3.00 in each of the next three years after having just two such seasons from 2013 to '19.

Things got back on track for Sugano in 2024 with a 15-3 record and 1.67 ERA in 24 games. He was previously posted by the Giants for MLB teams in December 2020 but went unsigned before the 30-day deadline expired.

Passan noted that NPB players earn the right to international free agency after nine seasons. Sugano just completed his 12th with the Giants, so he won't be subject to posting rules and deadlines this time around as he explores MLB options.