The Athletics might not have a home, but they’ve been incredibly active during the offseason.
The A’s, who will be playing in Sacramento before moving to Las Vegas when their stadium is ready, shelled out a three-year, $67 million contract for two-time All-Star pitcher Luis Severino. They also gave designated hitter Brent Rooker a five-year, $60 million extension after he hit 39 home runs and slashed .293/.365/.562 with a 165 OPS+ in 2024.
But those two deals might not be the biggest signings for the A’s this offseason after they brought in an 18-year-old two-way star from Japan who is drawing comparisons to three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani.
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Athletics sign Shotaro Morii to record-breaking deal for Japanese amateur
アスレチックスへようこそ！森井翔太郎選手！
— Athletics (@Athletics) January 15, 2025
(Welcome to the Athletics Shotaro Morii!) pic.twitter.com/dMzh9kGvnk
The Athletics signed 18-year-old Shotaro Morii to a $1,510,500 deal, the largest ever for a Japanese amateur outside of the country’s Nippon Professional Baseball. Morii decided to skip the NPB’s draft, where he would’ve been a top-10 pick, to sign with an MLB team.
According to Jesse Borek and Martín Gallegos of MLB.com, Morii, a left-handed hitter, smacked 45 home runs in high school and can crank it up to 95 mph on the mound.
“It’s a historic day for our organization,” said A’s assistant general manager Dan Feinstein, via MLB.com. “Shotaro is our first and one of the very few Japanese high school players to sign directly with a Major League team. We are anxious and excited to watch Shotaro both pitch and hit as he begins his ascent through our Minor League system beginning this spring.”
The A’s view Morii as an Ohtani-esque player — someone who can succeed both hitting and pitching.
“We knew Shotaro’s desire all along was to both pitch and hit,” Feinstein noted. “The fact that we see him as a two-way prospect was definitely a selling point in our favor. We’re talking internally with our pitching coaches and strength coaches and athletic trainers to put a plan in place that both protects his arm but also gets him plenty of reps at both positions. Exactly what that will look like is TBD right now.”
During an introductory press conference, Morii told reporters he emulates Jacob deGrom while pitching and Elly de la Cruz in the field and batter’s box.
“Elly De La Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds is my favorite player,” Morii said, via MLB.com. “He runs very fast, he has power and I love him because of his personality.”
