Outfielder and first baseman Yoshitomo Tsutsugo has decided to rejoin the DeNA BayStars in Japan's Central League, a baseball source revealed Monday.
The 32-year-old former Japanese national team slugger departed for the United States after the 2019 season but could not establish himself with a Major League Baseball club.
Tsutsugo was drafted out of high school by the BayStars in 2010 and spent his entire 10-year Nippon Professional Baseball career with the Yokohama-based club, hitting 205 home runs. He led the CL in both homers and RBIs in 2016.
In a total of 182 major league games for the Tampa Bay Rays, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Pittsburgh Pirates between 2020 and 2022, Tsutsugo struggled to a .197 batting average with 18 home runs and 75 RBIs.
He attended this year's spring training with the San Francisco Giants on a minor league deal but became a free agent after failing to secure an MLB roster spot.
Multiple NPB clubs, including the Yomiuri Giants, are believed to have been interested in signing Tsutsugo, Samurai Japan's cleanup hitter at the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
