NPB Tracker’s Patrick Newman translated the report from Sports Hochi in Japan …
Looks like Rakuten is not giving up on Tanaka. Hochi says they are going to offer him an $8m salary. http://t.co/PJRk1Cqa0U
— Patrick Newman (@npbtracker) December 19, 2013
It would be the highest single-season salary ever given out to a Nippon Professional Baseball player, but it seems unlikely to sway the 25-year-old right-hander, who has a publicly-stated desire to make the jump to Major League Baseball this offseason. He can probably double that salary in the United States given the setup of the new posting system, which will essentially be a bidding war between all of the teams willing to meet the $20 million posting max. Some of the richest clubs in Major League Baseball — like the Dodgers, Yankees, Cubs and Angels — are expected to try for Tanaka when the Rakuten Golden Eagles finally post him.
Tanaka went 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA and 183/32 K/BB in 212 innings this past summer in Japan.