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Right-handed pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano and the Baltimore Orioles have agreed to a one-year, $13 million contract, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Sugano won the Central League MVP last season, establishing himself as one of the best in Nippon Professional Baseball with a 1.67 ERA, three complete games and one shutout.
Sugano walked 16 batters and struck out 111 over 156.2 innings, finishing with a 15-3 record for the Yomiuri Giants.
It was reported that the 35-year-old was receiving interest from teams like the Los Angeles Angels and San Francisco Giants in late November, according to MLB Network Insider Jon Paul Morosi.
The two-time Sawamura Award winner—the Japanese equivalent of the Cy Young Award—has spent 12 seasons in the NPB before his pending move to MLB this year.
Sugano nearly made his Major League debut in 2020 after the Yomiuri Giants posted him in December of that year, according to Passan.
Baltimore was active in pursuing free-agent pitchers this offseason as they were looking to build around starting pitcher Corbin Burnes and right-handers returning from injury, Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells.
With the addition of Sugano’s deal and outfielder Tyler O’Neil’s three-year, $49.5 million contract, the Orioles’ payroll is estimated to be around $110 million, according to Passan.
