Former major league outfielder Tsuyoshi Shinjo signed a provisional contract carrying an annual salary of 80 million yen over two years with the Nippon Ham Fighters, officials of the Pacific League club said Thursday.
Shinjo agreed to a signing bonus of 40 million yen and can earn up to 50 million yen in performance-related incentives when he makes his comeback to Japanese pro baseball for the first time in four years. He will be wearing uniform No. 1.
"I decided I would join the team that first offered me a deal when I got back from the United States. It was Nippon Ham. I'm excited to play and can't wait to run around center field at Sapporo Dome," Shinjo said.
The 31-year-old, who has playing experience with the New York Mets and the San Francisco Giants, requested that the official signing be held next month before his fans in Sapporo, where the Fighters will move their base from Tokyo next season.
Shinjo's plans had been unknown until he made the announcement that he will "live in Hokkaido and become Shinjo of the Fighters" while attending a promotion event in Tokyo for an action movie a day earlier.
Shinjo was drafted by the Hanshin Tigers in the fifth round in 1990 before making the move to the New York Mets as a free agent in 2001. He was traded to the San Francisco Giants in 2002 where he became the first Japanese player to play in the World Series.