It’s been six years since the last MLB game in Tokyo, when Ichiro Suzuki bid a tear-jerking goodbye to baseball. It feels almost like fate, then, that the 2025

Chicago Cubs owner Tom Ricketts acknowledges challenges in competing with the Los Angeles Dodgers for top Japanese talent.

The Washington Nationals signed Japanese pitcher Shinnosuke Ogasawara despite his losing record. General Manager Mike Rizzo believes the lefty is “big league ready.”

Even though it’s been years since he last pitched in Major League Baseball, Trevor Bauer won’t give up on his playing career. The former Cleveland Guardians All-Star has re-signed a deal with the Yokohama DeNa BayStars of Japan’s NPB.

Another Japanese-born superstar hints at a future with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Hiroto Takahashi was spotted practicing in Dodgers gear.

The Washington Nationals are beefing up their rotation! The MLB team has inked a two-year, $3.5 million deal with left-handed Japanese pitcher Shinnosuke Ogasawara. Ogasawara, 27, will earn $1.5 million this season and $2 million in 2026.

Where is Trevor Bauer now? The former Cy Young winner’s career has taken unexpected turns. Here’s what he’s doing and why he’s still making headlines.

Ogasawara has been pitching in Nippon Professional Baseball since 2016. Last season ... He joins right-handers Jake Irvin, Michael Soroka and Trevor Williams, and left-handers MacKenzie Gore, DJ Herz and Mitchell Parker in starter contention.

That leads to a posting fee of $700K. Ogasawara, 27, pitched in part of nine seasons for the Chunichi Dragons of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. He threw 951 1/3 innings, allowing 3.62 ...

Bauer, who last played in MLB with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2021, pitched for the Bay Stars in 2023, when he recorded an 11-4 record and 2.59 ERA in 24 starts. Last year, he played for Diablos Rojos del Mexico in the Mexican League, where he went 10-0 with a 2.48 ERA.

Japanese pitchers who make the jump to the major leagues have often said the baseballs there are slipperier than those in Nippon Professional Baseball. But no one had done a scientific study on ...

Munetaka Murakami could be next. From Shohei Ohtani to Yoshinobu Yamamoto to Sasaki, there's been a wave of young Japanese superstars coming to MLB from Nippon Professional Baseball over the last few seasons. And there could be another big one coming next ...