Japanese team Nippon-Ham Fighters announced they will post Shohei Ohtani this offseason, bringing him a step closer to a high-profile move to Major League Baseball.
Ohtani, 23, was named the MVP of Japan's Pacific League in 2016 as he excelled as the ultra-rare two-way player: Ohtani was a dominant starting pitcher and plays the outfield on days he doesn't pitch.
If the Fighters do indeed post Ohtani, MLB teams will have an opportunity to bid on his rights. On Wednesday, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that MLB and NPB, Japan's top baseball league, had agreed one a one-year extension of the posting system in which Japanese teams receive a lump-sum of up to $20 million from the MLB team that signs their player.