Shintaro Fujinami, recently signed by the New York Mets, is departing from the Spring Training camp to address a personal matter in his native Japan.
The New York Mets announced Friday afternoon that relief pitcher Shintaro Fujinami has departed from the team due to a family matter. The 29-year-old right-hander has returned to Japan and is expected to be absent from Spring Training camp for a few days, as reported by MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo.
Fujinami is anticipated to return to the United States well ahead of the Opening Day on March 28th.
Fujinami joined the Mets on a one-year contract on February 2nd, following a mixed rookie season split between the Oakland Athletics and Baltimore Orioles.
In 2024, Fujinami’s base salary is slated to be $3.35 million, with the potential to increase to $4.2 million if he achieves all of his incentives. This represents a slight increase from his 2023 earnings of $3.25 million.
Fujinami, a three-time All-Star in Nippon Professional Baseball, began last year as a starter, but struggled, posting a win-loss record of 0-4 with a high 14.40 ERA. Additionally, he recorded an equal number of walks and strikeouts during that period.
During his final 20 appearances with the Athletics, Fujinami showcased improvement with a 3.32 ERA and a 3.7 strikeout-to-walk ratio. After being traded to Baltimore, he initially struggled in two outings, but then rebounded impressively with a 2.92 ERA and a 3.2 strikeout-to-walk ratio over his next 23 games.
However, Fujinami experienced some difficulties towards the end of the regular season, resulting in him being left off the Orioles’ playoff roster.
Overall, across 79.0 innings and 64 appearances in 2023, Fujinami’s performance yielded a record of 7-8 with a 7.18 ERA, a 1.494 WHIP, and an average of 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings.
In addition to Fujinami, the Mets bolstered their bullpen this offseason by signing Jake Diekman and Jorge López. Furthermore, they strengthened their starting rotation by acquiring Luis Severino, Sean Manaea, and Adrian Houser. However, there is uncertainty regarding the availability of Japanese ace Kodai Senga for the beginning of the regular season.
