Teruaki Sato could be a worthwhile acquisition for the Mariners if they decide to pursue him.
For the last several years, the Seattle Mariners have been unable to have success in landing free agents out of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, despite some of the best players in franchise history being of that background.
In the past, Seattle has been able to sign notable players such as near-unanimous National Baseball Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki, reliever Kazuhiro Sasaki and starting pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma. The most recent case of success in landing a player from Japan is current Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, who's more known for his post-Mariners playing days.
Since then, the Mariners have been unable to find success in landing some of the more recognizable names from NPB. They lost out on Shohei Ohtani's services to the Angels when he first came overseas, were unable to make an honest push for current Los Angeles Dodgers starter and 2025 World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, weren't able to land a sit-down meeting with current Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki and missed out on current Chicago White Sox and Toronto Blue Jays sluggers Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto, respectively.
These recent misses on Japanese players apparently haven't dissuaded Seattle from continuing to monitor the NPB. The Mariners reportedly had scouts in Japan to watch a start from Saitama Seibu Lions starter and the NPB's ERA leader, Kaima Taira.
Taira can pitch as either a closer or starter, which makes Seattle's interest all the more interesting as they have three former All-Stars in the rotation and a two-time All-Star, Andres Munoz, as the closer.
However, there's another player from NPB that is expected to be posted and eligible to sign with MLB teams this upcoming offseason: third baseman Teruaki Sato. And although the Mariners haven't been reported to have any scouts present at his games, perhaps they should.
Sato, who plays for the Hanshin Tigers, is one of the NPB's most prolific power hitters. Over 259 games the last two seasons, the 27-year-old has hit 74 home runs with 193 RBIs. He's slashed .324/.402/.638 with a 1.041 OPS in 120 games this season.
From a fit perspective, Sato can play third base and the corner spots in the outfield, making him a versatile enough player that the Mariners would be able to move him to find spots on the lineup for top 100 prospect Michael Arroyo and utility player Brendan Donovan in 2027. Granted, if Seattle is able to retain veteran third baseman/shortstop J.P. Crawford and/or left fielder Randy Arozarena, and sees former top prospect Colt Emerson return healthy and effective, that could complicate things.
However, looking at what both Murakami and Okamoto have done this season with their respective clubs, it's hard to not imagine the benefit the M's would have gotten with either in the lineup. the Mariners primary starting third basemen this season, Donovan, Emerson and Crawford, have all missed time due to injury. Emerson was nursing a displaced tendon in his wrist that he underwent season-ending surgery for.
As to Seattle's chances at landing Sato, it seems like the slugger has at least a surface-level interest and/or appreciation for the Emerald City.
Sato has been seen in year's past wearing a Mariners hat in batting practice and has also taken a vacation to Seattle, dressed head-to-toe in some of the city's sports teams, including a Julio Rodriguez jersey.
At this point, a potential Mariners pursuit of Sato is strictly hypothetical, and there's a chance no team will be able to land him this offseason if there's a lockout in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) negotiations between the MLB and MLB Players Association.
But it does seem like there is at least some thread, no matter how small, Seattle can land if it's interested in Sato. And if the Mariners are able to land him, it could go a long way in making the team a legitimate landing spot for Japanese players once again.
