Kona Takahashi has a 3.39 ERA over 11 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Yosuke Hayasaka / The Yomiuri Shimbun via Associated Press
Right-handed pitcher Kona Takahashi, whose posting window closes on Sunday, is going back to Nippon Professional Baseball, a league source told The Athletic.
Takahashi is set to return to the Seibu Lions and is working on a multiyear contract with the ability to opt out and become an international free agent. Such a deal would allow Takahashi to try again at landing with an MLB team, but without a posting fee attached to him, according to a league source.
While pitching for the Lions last season, Takahashi, 28, produced a 3.04 ERA (24 starts, 148 innings). He demonstrated strong control (6.7 percent walk rate), a calling card over his 11-year career. But his strikeout rate dropped to a career-worst 14.3 percent.
Takahashi had a down 2024 season with a 3.87 ERA (15 starts, 81 1/3 innings), but he pitched well during the previous two seasons with a 2.20 ERA in 2022 and 2.21 ERA in 2023.