While the Philadelphia Phillies did make it back to the postseason in 2026, they weren’t able to make much of a run. Now, Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski needs to find a way to address some major holes in their lineup amid what should be a lockout impacted offseason.
One place where the Phillies could look is overseas to Japan. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that Philadelphia will likely be in on third baseman Teruaki Sato, who entered the MLB posting system back on November 1st.
27 years old, Sato plays for the Hanshin Tigers in the NPB. In 2025, he won the Central League MVP. Then, in 2026, he won the Triple Crown. He’s also a five-time All-Star, winner of the Central League Baseball Nine Award, and winner Central League Mitsui Golden Glove Award.
Sato was chosen to represent Japan in the 2026 World Baseball Classic. There, he had a 1.017 OPS.
In 803 career NPB games, Sato is hitting .271 with an .851 OPS. He has 163 home runs and 518 RBIs. Now, he hopes to bring that power to MLB.
The Philadelphia Phillies Could Use Teruaki Sato at Multiple Positions
In Japan, Teruaki Sato is a third baseman. That should make him a pretty easy replacement for Alec Bohm for the Phillies. However, there is some thought that the Phillies could also be interested in him as an outfielder, which has long since been a position of need for Philadelphia.
Sato did play some outfield in the NPB. So, it’s not a random idea to move him to the outfield.
That would be particularly helpful to the Phillies if they were to try and bring back Luis Arraez. Pretty strictly a second baseman, Arraez would return to second. Meanwhile, Bryson Stott could take over at third base, like he did following the 2026 Trade Deadline. Presumably Bryce Harper returns to first base, leaving room in the outfield.
No harm done by signing Sato and not bringing back Arraez, though. Stott can play second while Sato takes over at third.
If there is a knock for the Phillies when it comes to Sato, it’s that he’s left-handed. Their best hitters are already lefties, and there is a massive power outage from the right-handed side of the plate. That can make competing against left-handed starters a challenge, which they’d also like to address this offseason.
Projected Contract for Teruaki Sato
At the start of the offseason, Jim Bowden shared some insight into Sato. That included that, among several contenders, the Phillies made sense as a fit.
“Some teams believe he can stay at third base; others see him as best suited for first base or left field. Either way, the bat profiles for the middle of the order. I think he stays at third base initially and would be a perfect fit for teams like the Phillies, Red Sox, Angels and Yankees, which leads me to believe this will end up being a big-market bidding war,” Bowden wrote.
That bit about it becoming a bidding war is important. Because of that, Bowden thinks Sato is going to get a massive contract, akin to Alex Bregman or Matt Chapman. That’s in the range of five years and $180 million.
Phillies Reportedly Interested in Japanese Star for Multiple Positions