The Yankees aren’t always the most active team when it comes to signing players from the Nippon Baseball League, but when they have, it’s usually turned out extremely well.
Hideki Matsui and Masahiro Tanaka were postseason heroes and beloved Yankees that were a massive part of many postseason runs. While the Yankees passed on Masataka Yoshida and Kodai Senga this past offseason, they may look toward the future with superstar slugger Munetaka Murakami, who’s going to be posted after the 2025 season. He holds the NPB record for HRs hit by a Japanese-born player with 56 in 2022, and he could be the next great player to make the transition from the NPB to MLB.