*This content was translated by AI.
Sato Teruaki (27, Hanshin Tigers), a "monster hitter" who was also selected as a member of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) Japanese national team in March after winning two titles with 40 home runs and 102 RBIs in the 2025 season, visited the club's facilities and spoke for the first time while declaring an ultra-hard response that he would not participate in the spring camp. Like Roki Sasaki (25), who succeeded in advancing to the Major League early from the Chiba Lotte Marines, the move to receive a promise to allow Major League posting seems to remain.
According to multiple media outlets such as Sports Hochi and Daily Sports, Sato first dismissed rumors of discord with the club, which is circulating everywhere, saying, "The negotiations are going well and going smoothly," while visiting the Hanshin club facility in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan on the 27th. He said, "It's not a conflict, but I feel like we're discussing it properly. I'm not sure yet whether it will be concluded," he added.
Sato was simply the best hitter in the NPB Central League in the 2025 season. Sato, who played in 139 regular league games, was a batter who completely dominated the league with a batting average of 0.277 (149 hits in 357 at-bats) with 40 home runs and 102 RBIs (on-base plus slugging) of 0.924. Since his debut in the first division in the 2021 season, he has hit the most home runs and won the Central League MVP (best player). In March last year, he hit a three-run home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Tokyo Dome. Based on these performances, he also joined the Japanese national team at the WBC in March.
However, Sato remains the only NPB player preparing for the 2026 season as an unpaid salary. In the end, they are confronting the club over the insertion of a clause on whether to allow posting to enter the Major League after the end of the season, not the amount. Sato is demanding a commitment that "they will allow the Major League challenge after the 2026 season." However, Hanshin is reportedly advocating the logic of equity with other players by saying, "The initiative lies with the club."
Hanshin Club will start its spring camp schedule on February 1st. Sato has even put forward a card of absence and is saying that he will hold the camp at his own expense. The plan is to join Miyazaki, Japan, where the Japanese national team will convene after participating in the camp at its own expense. In a meeting with reporters on the day, Sato was confident of his performance on WBC, saying, "My physical condition is already perfect."
In the end, Sato is asking the club for his dream of entering the Major League. Attention is also focusing on whether Sato will be able to play the WBC lightly with a promise from the club to "allow him to enter the Major League" like Sasaki.
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*This content was translated by AI.
