If the Yankees are going to make a serious splash this offseason, Teruaki Sato has to be near the top of the list.
New York’s search for a real answer at third base has dragged on for years, and the latest miss - the failed Ryan McMahon trade - only sharpened the need. Since Alex Rodriguez shifted into a full-time designated hitter role in 2015, the Yankees have only gotten brief fixes at the hot corner. Sato, a Japanese third baseman with a bat that keeps getting better, looks like the kind of long-term solution they’ve been chasing.
But there’s a catch, and it changes everything.
According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, Sato, who was officially posted on Sunday, has until December 1 to reach a deal. That matters because MLB’s current collective bargaining agreement expires after that date, and roster transactions would be frozen until a new CBA is in place.
According to Ken Rosenthal, NPB players who have been posted must sign before the potential lockout on Dec. 1, unlike when Seiya Suzuki was allowed to sign after the 2021-2022 lockout.That effectively shortens the 45-day negotiation window to ~30 days.https://t.co/Shjo50owRX
That turns the usual 45-day posting window into something much tighter, and it puts pressure on the Yankees to move fast. If they don’t get a deal done by December 1, there won’t be a second chance to circle back later.
That’s different from the situation for North American free agents. Players such as David Bednar and Jazz Chisholm Jr. could still be available once a new CBA is in place.
MLB free agents can’t negotiate during a lockout, but they also don’t face the same hard deadline to sign. International posted players do.
If they don’t land with a major league club during the window, they go back to their original team.
That applies to Sato, as well as other posted players like pitchers Kaima Taira and Hiromi Itoh. If Sato doesn’t sign by the deadline, he returns to NPB in 2027. And after winning the Central League Triple Crown, his value is as high as it’s ever been.
The market won’t make this easy for New York, either. Multiple teams are expected to chase Sato, and the shortened timeline makes a bidding war more likely. The Yankees are going to have to treat this like a sprint, not a marathon.
Teruaki Sato is expected to at least get a contract of four or five years with at least $25 million AAV, per @keithlaw (https://t.co/pDpQaaRuKg) pic.twitter.com/HhlXOFbo0l
Even with the price climbing, Sato looks like the kind of gamble worth making. The Triple Crown season is the headline, but his track record is what makes him especially intriguing. NPB has long been known as a tough offensive environment, and outside of the 2024 season, Sato has steadily improved his batting average, OPS and walk rate while cutting down his strikeouts year after year.
There will be an adjustment period, no doubt about it. But Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto carried similar offensive questions when they were posted last winter, and both delivered strong rookie seasons. Sato also comes with some defensive concerns at third base, though those become easier to live with if the bat plays.
For the Yankees, the message is simple: if they want him, they can’t wait. This is the only real shot they’ll get to make a meaningful external upgrade at third base, and the clock is already ticking.
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