It is an emotional story with an ending that may not be an ending after all. Masahiro Tanaka a pitcher the Yankees fought for seven years ago headed back to his home country, Japan, following the advice of his agent. If he couldn't play for the Yankees he didn't want to play in the MLB. So ends the story, with Tanaka riding into the sunset from the Bronx to Rakuten Eagles, where it all began. Or is this the end of Tanaka's tenure in US?
“I feel I have unfinished business in America, and I haven’t given up on that, so they agreed on terms that would keep those options open,” Tanaka said Saturday at a press conference held by the Golden Eagles. “Without throwing away those goals, I really want to win a Japan championship here. But there are no guarantees in this world, so my first goal is to give it all I have for this season," reported the New York Post. Wait, what? Would Tanaka actually consider coming back or rather would the Yankees bring him back?
“At the instant I became a free agent, truthfully, my desire was to re-sign with the Yankees and continue playing for them,” Tanaka said. “But at a very early stage, I heard from them through my agent and felt it would be better if I considered other options, which I considered, including a return to Japan,” reported the Post.
The 32-year-old pitcher started with the Eagles at age 18 and he played seven seasons with the team, winning a Japan Series title in 2013. The next seven years he spent in the Bronx where he served in the starting rotation. He didn't win a World Series Championship the Yankees but was named to the All Star Games in 2014 and 2019.
It was the Yankees that felt they could sign two pitchers instead of one, and the odd man out was Tanaka. And the Yankees did just that bringing in Corey Kluber and Jameson Taillon only a few days apart. But knowing that Tanaka has a foot in the door to maybe come back is comforting. Good luck Masahiro and thank you for all you have done for the Yankees. Hope to see you back in 2022.
--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof
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