As reported by Jeff Passan, the Orioles on Monday evening agreed to terms on a one-year contract with Tomoyuki Sugano, a 35-year-old veteran pitcher from Japan.
Right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano and the Baltimore Orioles are in agreement on a one-year, $13 million contract, sources tell ESPN. Sugano, 35, was one of the best pitchers in Japanese baseball this year, posting a 1.67 ERA and walking 16 against 111 strikeouts over 156.2 innings.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 17, 2024
It’s another one-year deal from Mike Elias, so no surprise there. I won’t pretend to have ever heard of Sugano before, so like most of you, I’m learning on the fly. Let’s see what we can discover, with some help from our friends.
Friend of ESR Avi Miller says that he should slot in as a backend starter.
FB/cutter sit 90-92 plus a bevy of offspeed/spinners (six pitch mix).
⬆️16 walks over 156.2 innings in 2024 is elite stuff in NPB environment
⬇️I'd expect he gives up a whole bunch of home runs in slug-heavy MLB environmentHe slots in as a backend starter.
From @yakyucosmo: https://t.co/vrMugrVzU6 pic.twitter.com/682srADZmD
— Avi Miller 🟦 (@AviMiIIer) December 17, 2024
I’ve heard Sugano described as a “junkballer” due to the fact that he seemingly throws every type of breaking ball and off-speed pitch out there. He doesn’t strike out a ton of batters, but due to the fact he doesn’t walk anyone either, his K:BB ratio is still elite. Paired with Zach Eflin, the Orioles could have one of the stingiest rotations in MLB when it comes to free passes in 2025.
Perusing Sugano’s wikipedia page teaches us that he’s spent his entire career with the Yomiuri Giants of the Nippon Professional Baseball league (NPB). Interestingly, he tried to join MLB following the 2020 season, but ended up going back to Japan after not signing with an American team (or the Blue Jays, I guess). He was the Central League MVP in 2014, 2020, and 2024, won the Japanese Triple Crown (leading the league in Ks, ERA, and wins) in 2018, pitched a no-hitter in the same season, and is an eight-time All-Star.
One interesting bit of trivia pertains to his Oriole connections:
Koji Uehara and Tomoyuki Sugano were actually teammates on the 2018 Yomiuri Giants, too.
Uehara had a 3.63 ERA in 36 appearances in his age-43 season.
Sugano had a 2.14 ERA in 28 games in his age-28 season.https://t.co/L3vXHHzZ2f https://t.co/DPAhaWKINa
— Jake Rill (@JakeDRill) December 17, 2024
Eight years ago in the WBC, he struck out Adam Jones and other American stars.
Here’s Tomoyuki Sugano in 2017 striking out Adam Jones, Giancarlo Stanton, Nolan Arenado and other USA stars in the 2017 WBC pic.twitter.com/HBz70RZFcu
— Jacob Calvin Meyer (@jcalvinmeyer) December 17, 2024
How much does he have left in the tank? If he’s learned to get hitters out using his breaking stuff and elite command, that should play, even if the velocity isn’t up to current MLB standards. I’ll be rooting for him not just because he will be playing for my favorite team, but because I like to see anyone succeed by actually *pitching* these days, instead of just chasing velocity and spin rates (yes, I’m old).
As for starting pitchers who fit the former mold a little better, Corbin Burnes remains unsigned.
Ken Rosenthal speculated on Fair Territory that perhaps Corbin Burnes could end up taking a short, high AAV contract, say around 3 years with a $45M AAV with opt outs.
He also mentioned he would like to go back West since he has a home in AZ and is a native of CA. He brought up… pic.twitter.com/GxqiaKZcWT
— Robbie Hyde (@gingersnaphyde) December 16, 2024
If Burnes signs the kind of deal he likely wants ($300M-plus), I’d be surprised if he doesn’t end up with the orange and black team on the other coast. If that deal doesn’t materialize and he actually signs something shorter as mentioned above, then maybe the Orioles still have a shot.
Three years and $150M with opt-outs? Why not? Birdland is still itching for the team to sign someone to a deal that signifies it is truly a new, post-Angelos era, but in the meantime, having Burnes back, if it’s just on basically another one-year deal, will soothe some anxieties among fans who grow increasingly worried that it’s still same-old same-old and the window is already closing.
For now, the Birds’ 2025 rotation is shaping up as thus:
1. Zach Eflin
2. Grayson Rodriguez
3. Dean Kremer
4. Sugano
5. Trevor Rogers
Later on, Kyle Bradish will hopefully become an option, and Big Al Suarez, Cade Povich, and others will have a say in things.
Putting Burnes back at the top and moving everyone else down one sure looks a lot better though.
