The Philadelphia Phillies have been attempting to sign free agents who have been posted from the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) in Japan for a few years. They pursued but missed out on both Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shota Imanaga. Philadelphia signed Koyo Aoyagi to a minor league contract last winter but the right-hander struggled in their system before being released in July.
However Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and managing partner John Middleton will continue to try to sign players from Japan as an influx of talent transitions their careers from the NPB to MLB. One of the latest players to be posted to free agency is Kona Takahashi.
The right-hander would be a good option for the Phillies this offseason to replace Ranger Suárez, who will likely come to terms on a multi-year contract with another franchise in free agency.
Signing Kona Takahashi would help Phillies replace Ranger Suárez
With Takahashi posted, the Phillies now have another pitching option from Japan to consider, in addition to their reported interest in Tatsuya Imai. According to ESPN's Jeff Passan, Takahashi's posting window runs from Nov. 21 through Jan. 4, 2026, at 5 p.m. ET.
First baseman Kazuma Okamoto and right-hander Kona Takahashi have been posted, joining Munetaka Murakami and Tatsuya Imai coming over from Japan this winter. Okamoto and Takahashi's posting windows begin tomorrow and will end Jan. 4 at 5 p.m.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 20, 2025
MLB.com's Brian Murphy writes that Takahashi showed his potential with the Saitama Seibu Lions in 2022 and 2023, compiling a 2.20 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP in 330 2/3 combined innings in 49 games. He had 128 strikeouts in 2022, followed by 120 the next season.
However, his statistics were not as good in 2024. Takahashi had a 3.54 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP in 114 1/3 innings. He rebounded in 2025, finishing with a 3.04 ERA in 148 innings, along with a 1.23 WHIP. He finished with 88 strikeouts, which were slightly more than the 83 he had the season prior.
Like Suárez, Takahashi has great command of his pitches and a high groundball rate due to his splitter. He doesn't walk many hitters, another similarity to the former Phillies lefty. Takahashi would be good insurance for the Phillies' rotation
A club can never have too many pitching options over the grind of a season from spring training to playoff baseball in October, if they're fortunate enough to play beyond September.
With Suárez likely not re-signing with the Phillies, their starting pitching for the start of the 2026 regular season currently includes Zack Wheeler, Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo, Aaron Nola, Taijuan Walker, and Andrew Painter.
Wheeler may not be ready for the start of the regular season, as he is recovering from thoracic outlet decompression surgery. It remains to be seen if the front office and Phillies manager Rob Thomson want to use Walker in the club's rotation to open the season.
Painter, the franchise's top prospect, pitched in the minors this year for the first time since 2022 after he underwent Tommy John surgery before the 2023 regular season. He is expected to compete for a starting spot in the Phillies' rotation once spring training starts in mid-February. Whether he makes their Opening Day roster or not is uncertain, but he is on track to debut with the Phillies next season.
While starting pitching is not as high a priority for the Phillies to add this winter as some of their other position groups, they should pursue Takahashi. They can't have enough pitching options. Signing him will also create interest in the Phillies organization among players who will post to free agency from NPB in the future.