The Hiroshima Carp announced on Thursday the acquisition of former Central League home run king Takahiro Arai, after he was granted his release by the Hanshin Tigers earlier this month.
The 37-year-old Arai will be returning to the club he won the CL home run title with in 2005 and is set to be unveiled at a news conference at Mazda Stadium on Friday.
"(Arai) is a player that will fight. Hopefully this will increase the competition for places," said Carp director Kiyoaki Suzuki.
Arai hit just .244 with three home runs and 31 RBIs this season for the Tigers, who lost to the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks in the Japan Series. In 2014, Arai took a backseat to first base man Mauro Gomez, who drove in 109 runs to win the CL RBI title.
Arai signed with Hanshin as a free agent in 2008, after winning the 2005 home run title with Hiroshima. He also led the league in RBIs in 2011.