Former Yankees starter Masahiro Tanaka took a significant pay cut over the weekend when he re-signed with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles.
Tanaka will make ¥475 million, or $3.6 million, plus incentives in 2023, per The Japan Times. The righty reportedly made ¥900 million, or $6.82 million, in each of the last two seasons.
The 34-year-old Tanaka felt his new deal was fair after he recorded just 13 wins over the last two seasons, though he had a 3.16 ERA over that span.
“Four wins and then nine are far behind the big expectations the club had for me and are a betrayal of the fans’ hopes too,” Tanaka told an online news conference, per The Japan Times.
“It’s been a really undignified two years.”
While it may sound like Tanaka is being harsh on himself, he set sky-high expectations during his first stint with the Golden Eagles. He pitched for Rakuten from 2007-2013, and he went 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA in his last season in Japan before joining the Yankees in 2014.
Tanaka stayed in the Bronx through the 2020 season, compiling a 78-46 record with a 3.74 ERA over 1,054.1 innings. He added a 3.33 ERA over 10 postseason starts.
Tanaka wanted to return to the Yankees after the 2020 season, but he was replaced in the rotation by Corey Kluber and Jameson Taillon. So Tanaka went back to his home country instead and rejoined the team that he began his pro career with.
"When I became a free agent, honestly, I wanted to sign another contract with (the) Yankees and play there," Tanaka said at the time, according to Jason Coskrey of The Japan Times. "Then, as I heard different things, I thought I might have to take a different road and considered various things."
Tanaka needs just 10 wins to reach 200 for his professional career.
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