One of the most mysterious free agency sweepstakes in recent memory wound up with a fitting destination.
Tatsuya Imai, the 27-year-old Japanese right-hander, had until Friday to sign with a major league team before his posting window closed. But in the weeks and days leading up to that deadline, no one seemed to have much information on which teams Imai was favoring.
Almost nobody linked Imai to the Houston Astros throughout his free agency process. Once reports surfaced that he’d signed with Houston, however, the fit immediately made sense.
As first reported by Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Imai and the Astros agreed to a three-year deal on Thursday. Per Chandler Rome of The Athletic, the deal is worth up to $63 million over those three years, but contains an $18 million guaranteed salary for each season.
Imai also will reportedly have the ability to opt out after each of the first two seasons, and depending on how many innings he pitches, he can max out his yearly salary at $21 million.
For the Seibu Lions of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball last year, Imai pitched to a 1.92 ERA in 163 2/3 innings, striking out 178 batters, walking 45 and allowing just 101 hits. He features a mid-90s fastball, a unique gyro slider with hardly any horizontal break and an above-average splitter, giving him a far more advanced arsenal than the average major league rookie.
The Astros, meanwhile, had an obvious hole in their rotation with two-time All-Star Framber Valdez hitting free agency this winter. For all intents and purposes, it appears Imai will fill the void left behind by Valdez and slot in behind ace Hunter Brown at the top of the rotation.
It was a hugely disappointing year for Houston, which missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016, but with Imai landing in an Astros uniform, it would hardly be a surprise to see the longtime American League West powerhouse rise up to challenge the defending champion Seattle Mariners in the new year.
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