Blue Jays reportedly battling Red Sox for the services of Japanese slugger

The Toronto Blue Jays have already crossed off a couple of major needs this offseason. They've added plenty of pitching. Dylan Cease is a top of the rotation arm and Cody Ponce, along with Rule 5 Draft add Spencer Miles, could fit in the rotation or in the bullpen. Meantime, Tyler Rogers and Chase Lee were brought in to bolster the 'pen.

But they have yet to address their lineup, which, for the time being, has lost a potent bat in shortstop Bo Bichette still currently on the free agent market. And while the current infield mix has players who are capable of being every day guys with Andrés Gimenez, Ernie Clement and Addison Barger leading that group, it is reported that Toronto is interested in adding a free agent bat with plenty of potential.

But one specific target has got the attention of their division rivals in the Red Sox as well, and that target is Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami.

Blue Jays reportedly battling Red Sox for the services of Japanese slugger

The 25-year-old left handed slugger was posted by the Yakult Swallows and has until Dec. 22 to sign with a team in MLB, and MLB Network's Jon Morosi says both the Blue Jays and the Red Sox have shown interest in signing him.

"Murakami is of interest to teams like the Red Sox, the Mariners, the Tigers, the Phillies, the Mets, the Jays, a lot of different teams,” Morosi said. “All the power that he’s had in the past, the 56-homer season, a really intriguing lefty bat. Yeah, there’s some swing and miss, but he’s a guy that a lot of teams like. You can’t wait forever on (Alex) Bregman because Murakami is no longer a secondary option once you get past December 22.”

The Blue Jays also seemed interested in Bregman last year before he signed with the Red Sox. The 31-year-old Bregman produced a 3.5 bWAR season in 2025 with 18 home runs and a .273/.360/.462 slash line for Boston, and then opted out of the remaining two years and $40 million left on his deal. While Murakami is six years younger than Bregman, his market could completely depend on what Murakami ends up getting.

Scouts don't love Murakami's defence, which is also one of the big selling features for Bregman. He won a Gold Glove award in 2024 so that should earn him some extra dollars whenever he comes to an agreement on his next contract.

Either way, both the Blue Jays and the Red Sox (along with other teams as Morosi reported) have room and a need to add a player of Murakami's caliber and potential. Barring either of those teams getting Murakami, they could switch their focus and look to make a deal with Bregman.