Yuki Yanagita becomes highest paid position player in NPB history

Yuki Yanagita has been one of the more dominant players in Nippon Professional Baseball. A power and speed threat in his younger days, he has been a key part of the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks’ lineup as they have been one of the more dominant teams in the Japan Pacific League.

Yanagita will make history in the 2022 season. He is set to earn 620 million yen, the equivalent of approximately $5.46 million, next season. That amount will make him the highest paid position player in NPB history.

Yuki Yanagita getting his due

He has become one of the more highly decorated players in Japanese baseball history. He has been a part of six Japan Series winning teams, winning the Outstanding Player Award four times and taking home the 2018 PLCS MVP award. A seven time NPB All Star, Yanagita has been named to the Pacific League Best Nine five times and has taken home five Gold Glove awards.

Those awards mirror his impressive statistical career. He has produced a .319/.421/.554 batting line in his 4676 NPB plate appearances, hitting 214 homers and 233 doubles while stealing 156 bases. Yanagita has five seasons where he has hit over 25 homers, and joined the 30-30 club in 2015.

This payday surpasses another NPB legend. Hideki Matsui had held the record with a salary of 610 million yen, which Yanagita tied last season. He does have a long way to go to set the record for the highest salary in NPB history – that is currently held by Masahiro Tanaka, who is taking home 900 million yen.

Yuki Yanagita has had an impressive career on the diamond. He is making more Nippon Professional Baseball history with his salary.