Munetaka Murakami News: Officially posted for MLB teams

The Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball posted Murakami for major-league teams Friday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Murakami's 45-day negotiating window begins Saturday, and he will have until Dec. 22 to reach a deal with an MLB club. The 25-year-old has collected a .945 OPS in eight seasons in Japan and is coming off an injury-shortened 2025 campaign that still saw him slug 22 home runs over 56 games. Murakami has swing-and-miss concerns -- he had a 29.5 percent strikeout rate during his last full season in 2024 -- but his power is expected to translate to MLB if he makes enough contact. The left-handed hitter has mostly played third base in NPB, but there's a good chance he'll shift to first base on this side of the Pacific.