New York Yankees right-handed pitcher Masahiro Tanaka has decided he will remain with the team and not exercise his opt-out option.
Masahiro Tanaka announced on Friday evening that he will remain with the New York Yankees for the remainder of his contract signed in 2014.
The 28-year-old had until 11:59 pm.m on Saturday night to decide on whether he wanted to opt out of his seven-year, $155 million contract with the Yankees. Deciding to stay means he will serve the remaining three years on his deal and earn the remaining $67 million.
In 30 starts in 2017 coming off a superb 2016 campaign, Tanaka went 13-12 with a 4.74 ERA and came up huge in the postseason by going 2-1 with a 0.90 ERA and a .369 OPS against in three postseason outings versus the Cleveland Indians and world champion Houston Astros.
As he is now locked in for at least three seasons, the right-hander is looking forward to being a part of a special Yankees’ team.
“I’m excited to be part of this team,” Tanaka said in his statement. “I’m committed to our goal of bringing a World Series Championship back to the Steinbrenner family, the Yankees organization, and the great fans of New York.”
Next to finding the next Yankees’ manager, Tanaka’s decision was easily toward the top of the team’s priority list this offseason. He’ll now re-join a rotation that features Luis Severino, Sonny Gray, and Jordan Montgomery.
Statement from @t_masahiro18: pic.twitter.com/HVBwht85w1
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) November 3, 2017
