Nippon Professional Baseball players made available to MLB teams through the posting system have 45 days to negotiate with teams. That timeframe will not change if there is a lockout in December, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
Last time there was a lockout, the league adjusted its agreement with NPB to give posted Japanese players more time to work out an MLB deal. The 2021-22 offseason froze when a lockout began on December 2, and MLB paused the NPB negotiating window. It reopened once a new CBA was ironed out. There won’t be that type of adjustment this time around.
The league and the players have until December 1 to agree on a new CBA. If that doesn’t happen, a lockout will commence, which will freeze all transactions. Third baseman Teruaki Sato and right-handers Kaima Taira and Hiromi Itoh were officially posted on Sunday. The timing of the potential lockout will give the posted Japanese players about 30 days to find a major league deal. If a contract isn’t reached, they’ll return to their NPB teams.
A month to work out a deal isn’t anything new. At the time of the last lockout, the negotiating window was 30 days. The league expanded the window to 45 days in December 2022.
Sato is the headliner of the list, particularly in a weak free agent class for hitters. The 27-year-old slashed .306/.383/.609 with 39 homers for the Hanshin Tigers this season. Sato won the Triple Crown and is expected to win his second straight MVP award. He’s one of, if not the, top bats on the market.
Itoh has been a steady starter for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters over the past six seasons. He put together 172 2/3 innings of a 3.23 ERA in 2026. The 29-year-old Itoh has never recorded more than a strikeout per inning, but he’s shown elite control over the past three years. Itoh won Japan’s equivalent of the Cy Young Award in 2025.
Taira had mostly been a reliever across eight seasons with the Seibu Lions. He joined the rotation in 2026 and delivered an excellent season. Taira tossed 146 innings with a 1.36 ERA and a sub-1.00 WHIP. He had a 24.8% strikeout rate to go with a career-low 7.9% walk rate. Taira will turn 27 in a couple of weeks.
MLB teams that sign an NPB player are required to pay a posting fee. The fee is based on the value of the contract. It’s 20% for deals of $25MM or less. Another 17.5% fee is tacked on for the next $25MM. Contracts exceeding $50MM include a 15% fee for the amount beyond that number.
Photo courtesy of Darren Yamashita, Imagn Images
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