Mar 27, 2025; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres general manager A.J. Preller looks on before an Opening Day baseball game between the San Diego Padres and the Atlanta Braves at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

Padres' AJ Preller Traveled to Japan to Scout 2 Stars Coming to MLB This Offseason

Originally posted on San Diego Padres on SI
By Nelson Espinal | Last updated Sep 5, 2025 5:00 PM ET

San Diego Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller reportedly went to Japan on a scouting mission for two potential star free agents.

Preller, known for his active approach during player acquisition windows, is already preparing for the winter when two Japanese players are set to hit the market.

Infielder Munetaka Murakami and right-hander Tatsuya Imai are projected to come stateside and enter free agency, and according to reporting from ESPN's Jeff Passan, the Padres executive has already scouted both players.

Passan published a massive free agency primer ahead of the offseason in which he revealed Preller's scouting mission.

"Murakami wanted to come to MLB last year but was not 25 years old and thus would have been subject to signing as an international amateur free agent, with a ceiling of around a $10 million payday," Passan wrote on ESPN.

"Now 25, he will likely be posted by the Yakult Swallows and has been scouted in person this season by New York Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns and San Diego Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller, the latter of whom saw Murakami whack three home runs for the Swallows on Saturday (and was later at Imai's gem, too)."

Imai is a 27-year-old Japanese ace who has a 1.50 ERA with 159 strikeouts and 37 walks in 143.2 innings pitched. He is set to follow in the footsteps of Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shota Imanaga, both of whom got big paydays as international free agents.

Murakami, on the other hand, is even younger than Imai as a hitter with high contact numbers and power.

Out of the two, Imai makes the most sense for the Padres, considering the team is set to lose one or both of Dylan Cease and Michael King.

For Murakami, Manny Machado currently takes up third base and considering the longtime Padres' age, he likely can't move back to shortstop. This leaves Murakami likely taking up first base, potentially replacing Luis Arraez, who is also set to be a free agent.

Considering the Padres' focus on competing now, the organization should get a healthy payroll and potentially dealing some veteran contracts could unlock even more money for either of these two Japanese stars or other players.

Regardless, Preller will always be looking for a deal, and if the opportunity is there, he will take a swing at an international free agent.