Report: RHP Tomoyuki Sugano leaving Japan for MLB

Field Level Media|published: 10/04/2024, 12:12pm EDT

Jul 27, 2021; Yokohama, Japan; The flags of Japan and the United States of America are raised during the playing of the national anthems before the gold medal game in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Summer Games at Yokohama Baseball Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kareem Elgazzar-Imagn Images

Japanese right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano is coming to Major League Baseball this summer as an international free agent, ESPN reported Friday.

Sugano, who turns 35 on Oct. 11, has played for the Yomiuri Giants in Nippon Professional Baseball since 2013.

The eight-time All-Star is having a resurgent season with a 1.67 ERA and a 15-3 record over 24 starts for the Central League champions.

He owns a 136-75 career record with a 2.45 ERA. Sugano is a two-time Central League MVP (2014, 2020) and two-time winner of the Sawamura Award (2017, 2018), the equivalent of the Cy Young Award.

Players in NPB earn the right to international free agency after nine seasons. Sugano is in his 12th campaign with the Giants and faces no restrictions on signing with an MLB team.

--Field Level Media