According to Jon Heyman, the Pirates are signing Yoshitomo Tsutsugo, a 29-year-old 1B/DH/LF who has played with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays over the last two seasons. He has hit .181/.291/.315 over 89 big league games.
Yoshitomo Tsutsugo is signing with Pirates
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 15, 2021
Tsutsugo showed big power numbers in Japan before coming to the U.S. in 2020. He hit 255 homers over ten seasons. He was sliding a bit in production before he signed with the Rays, putting up his best numbers in 2016 when he had a 1.112 OPS and 44 homers. His .899 OPS in 2019 was his lowest since he was 21 years old in 2013. He hit just .197 with eight homers in 51 games for the Rays during the shortened 2020 season, then started off slow with a .167 average and no homers in 26 games. He was traded to the Dodgers, where he hit .120 in 12 games before heading to the minors. His minor league time started off slow as well, but he has picked things up recently. He plays in the high offense former Pacific Coast League, where he currently has an .868 OPS in 56 games, with much better results recently.
