The New York Yankees are at a point where hope and doubt are at odds with each other. Gerrit Cole, their finest pitcher, is throwing again after not pitching in a major league game since 2024. The good news comes when the Yankees are losing important offensive players, which raises doubts about whether the team can compete in 2026 even if their ace gets healthy again.
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Yankees target Munetaka Murakami to replace departing power hitters
The New York Yankees aren’t just sitting back and letting their lineup fall apart. As holes opened up on the roster, the front office focused on third base. On Friday morning, a solution came from across the Pacific. Munetaka Murakami said he wants to play in Major League Baseball, and the Yankees are in a good position to go after the Japanese superstar who could fill the gap left by the players who are leaving.
Murakami became famous for destroying pitchers in Nippon Professional Baseball starting in 2018. The Tokyo Yakult Swallows slugger hit 246 home runs in eight seasons, including a record-breaking 56-homer season in 2022 that broke Sadaharu Oh’s single-season record of 55 that had stood since 1964. The Yankees really need a bat like that after seeing Bellinger’s 29 home runs go to free agency.
Imago
Credit: IMAGO
Jeff Passan of ESPN said that Japanese star third baseman Munetaka Murakami is entering the posting system on Friday. This officially starts one of the most exciting free agencies of the winter. There is a real sense of urgency. Murakami has 45 days to sign, starting at 8 a.m. ET on Saturday. He will sign with a big-league team before the deadline at 5 p.m. on Dec. 22. The Yankees have six weeks to make their case or watch another power bat go to another team.
Murakami’s glove work is what makes things hard. Scouts think he should be a designated hitter because he isn’t very good at defense at third base, but Giancarlo Stanton already has that job in the Bronx. The Yankees have to decide whether to put Murakami in a position where he might have trouble on defense or let this chance pass them by while their lineup keeps losing talent.