Which team will sign Kazuma Okamoto?

There are less than 48 hours left before the NPB slugger post window closes Kazuma Okamoto. His first MLB contract must be finalized Sunday at 4:00 PM Central. There is a good chance that Okamoto will agree to the terms tomorrow. Tatsuya Imai agreed to a three-year deal with the Astros yesterday to allow a day off for a standard physical before his own signing deadline this afternoon.

The right-handed Okamoto is one of the more interesting mid-range free agent bats. He is a career .277/.361/.521 hitter over eleven seasons at Japan’s top level. Okamoto was limited to 69 games last year due to an elbow injury. That kept his counting stats low, but his .327/.416/.598 slash line was the best rate production of his career. He has six 30-homer seasons on his resume and walked as often as he did last year.

Okamoto is entering his age-30 season. He is unlikely to get a long-term contract, especially after younger Japanese stars Imai and Munetaka Murakami found markets cold enough to enter into short contracts. He should land at a club that sees him as a potential mid-table option in the coming seasons. While Okamoto doesn’t have the dazzling power that Murakami brings, he should have a higher floor based on his superior bat-to-ball skills. Okamoto connected on 80.4% of his swings last year; Murakami’s contact rate has been below 64% in consecutive seasons.

Both players are corner bats. Murakami is expected to be a first baseman for the White Sox. Okamoto’s position likely depends on his landing spot. One scout MLBTR spoke with early in the offseason believed he could play serviceable but unspectacular third base. Okamoto made 52 appearances at the hot corner and played 27 games at first base for the Yomiuri Giants last season. The year before, he was primarily a first baseman, making 130 appearances against 39 appearances at third.

Okamoto was a full-time infielder last year. However, he has 164 career appearances on the outfield grass, 15 of which came two seasons ago. Will Sammon of The Athletic raised the possibility of an MLB team giving Okamoto some work in left field as another way to get his bat into the lineup.

The Blue Jays, Red Sox, Pirates, Padres, Angels and Cubs were at least loosely associated with Okamoto during his post-season. San Diego and Pittsburgh’s interest comes up most often, although it’s unclear how much we should learn from them. The White Sox were not committed to Murakami until very late in the process, while it was not publicly known that the Astros were involved with Imai until a deal was made.

Where will Okamoto end up?