The Pittsburgh Pirates may be building toward something bigger in 2027, but the next step is obvious: they need impact talent, and Teruaki Sato is suddenly on the board.
Hanshin Tigers of Nippon Professional Baseball announced that they will post Sato this winter, opening the door for MLB clubs to negotiate with him for 45 days. During that posting period, teams can offer whatever they want, with the only financial requirement being the release fee owed to Hanshin.
For Pittsburgh, this is the kind of opening it does not often get.
The Pirates have not had much success landing international free agents of this type, but Sato fits a glaring need. Third base was unsettled for them in 2026, with several players taking turns at the spot.
Nick Gonzales handled a big chunk of the work there, and while the bat played - he finished sixth in MLB with a .302 batting average - the glove did not. His -15 defensive runs saved and -11 outs above average were both the worst marks for any third baseman in 2026, minimum 850 innings played.
Sato would change that dynamic right away. He has logged 593 games at third base over six seasons with Hanshin since 2021, and he won the Mitsui Golden Glove Award at the position in 2025, which goes to the nine best defensive players in NPB. That gives Pittsburgh a legitimate answer at third, while utility man Jared Triolo would be a strong backup option as a Gold Glove Award winner himself.
The fit goes beyond defense, though. The Pirates need pop, and Sato brings plenty of it.
Across his time with Hanshin, he has hit .273/.338/.516 for an .854 OPS, with 846 hits, 195 doubles, 28 triples, 167 home runs and 542 RBI. He also earned five All-Star nods in 2021-23 and 2025-26.
His 2026 season was the best of the bunch. Sato won the Triple Crown by leading NPB with a .306 batting average, 39 home runs and 106 RBI. Before that, he was the 2025 Central League MVP after hitting .277/.345/.579 with a .924 OPS, 149 hits, 34 doubles, 40 home runs and 102 RBI.
That power would immediately stand out in Pittsburgh. His 39 home runs this season were twice as many as the Pirates’ primary third baseman, who finished with just a combined 15.
The Pirates already have pieces in place around him. Their lineup includes Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz and Esmerlyn Valdez in the outfield, Spencer Horwitz and Ryan O'Hearn at first base, Konnor Griffin at shortstop, Gonzales in the infield mix, and Rafael Flores Jr. and Endy Rodríguez both showed improvement in 2026.
That makes Sato even more appealing. He would add another layer of thump to an offense that is trending up, while filling a position where Pittsburgh clearly needs help.
This would also be a notable shift in how the Pirates operate. Their last major international free agent signing was Jung Ho Kang, the third baseman/shortstop from South Korea, on Jan. 16, 2015, for four years and $11 million. The club has not usually made that market a priority, though it did pursue Japanese sluggers Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto last offseason.
Okamoto drew the stronger connection to the Pirates, who were looking for a right-handed power bat and a third baseman, but he eventually signed with the Toronto Blue Jays on a four-year, $60 million deal.
Money will matter this winter. The Pirates already project at a $100 million payroll before any new additions, and it is not clear how far owner Bob Nutting is willing to go beyond that. On top of that, a lockout and labor fight between owners and the players' union are widely expected to shape the offseason market.
Still, Pittsburgh showed some willingness to push last winter. The team signed O'Hearn to a two-year, $29 million deal and traded for Brandon Lowe, who went on to hit 35 home runs.
If the Pirates want to make another swing like that, Sato would be the kind of move that gets attention. It would send a clear message to the league and to their own fanbase that they are serious about putting together a playoff team in 2027.
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