Seibu Lions right-handed pitcher Kona Takahashi is expected to possibly return to Japan to start the 2026 season.

Kona Takahashi and Tatsuya Imai, both right-handed pitchers from Japan, played together for the Saitama Seibu Lions between 2018 and 2025, and this winter they jointly pursued MLB free agency via the posting process.

While Imai has secured a major league spot with the Houston Astros, Takahashi may ultimately return to Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the upcoming season.

The posting negotiation window for Takahashi closes at 5 PM Eastern Time on Sunday. Sources indicate he currently holds at least one MLB contract offer, but it might not be enough for the 28-year-old pitcher to join the majors this offseason. Instead, he may sign a new multi-year deal with the Seibu Lions that includes an opt-out clause allowing him to re-enter free agency next year without going through the posting system again.

Unless a larger MLB team submits a last-minute offer, this appears to be Takahashi’s most practical option. If he performs well in the 2026 season, his market value could rise substantially the following year.

Turning 29 on February 3, Takahashi excelled during the 2022-2023 seasons with the Seibu Lions, pitching 330.2 innings with an ERA of just 2.20 and a WHIP of 1.13. His performance dipped the next year (0-11 record, 3.87 ERA, 1.45 WHIP) across 81.1 innings. In 2025, he posted a 3.04 ERA over 148 innings.

Takahashi relies on pinpoint control rather than strikeouts. Although he limited walks to 6.7% last season, he struck out only 88 batters with a 14.3% strikeout rate. Over his 11 NPB seasons, his single-season strikeout rate never exceeded 20%, while last season the MLB average strikeout rate was 22.2%.