By Frank Pingue
TORONTO, Jan 6 (Reuters) – In what may be the most endearing free agency decision in baseball history, Japanese slugger Kazuma Okamoto let his daughter weigh in on his career choice, and her artistic eye played a factor in his decision to join Major League Baseball’s Toronto Blue Jays.
Okamoto was introduced on Tuesday as the newest member of the Blue Jays and revealed that before making his decision he put the logos of all 30 MLB teams in front of his daughter and asked her which one she liked most.
The verdict? Toronto’s stylized blue jay head with an integrated red maple leaf won the day, and Okamoto said that endorsement stuck with him throughout a decision-making process that culminated with him signing a four-year deal with the Blue Jays on Sunday.
“Thank you very much for this opportunity. I am very happy to join Blue Jays,” the 29-year-old said in English during his introductory press conference. “I will work hard every day and do my best for the team. Thank you for your support. Nice to meet you. Go Blue Jays.”
Okamoto was one of the top Japanese free agents available this offseason and his power will be a welcome addition to a Blue Jays team that lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in extra innings of the decisive seventh game of the World Series last year.
The six-time Nippon Professional Baseball all-star spent 11 seasons with the Yomiuri Giants, establishing himself as one of Japan’s most feared right-handed hitters and leading the league in home runs three times.
He was limited to 69 games last year due to an elbow injury suffered in a collision with a batter while playing first base.
“To have this addition… of Kazuma Okamoto is another significant step for this organization,” said Blue Jays General Manager Ross Atkins. “We definitely got better today.”
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in TorontoEditing by Toby Davis)
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