Miguel Yajure Signs With NPB’s Yakult Swallows

Right-hander Miguel Yajure has signed with the Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball, according to Yahoo Japan (Japanese language link).  It’s a one-year contract for the 25-year-old Yajure, worth approximately $550K.

Originally an amateur signing for the Yankees out of Venezuela in 2015, Yajure made his MLB debut in 2020 by pitching seven innings over three games.  That offseason, New York included Yajure as part of the four-player package sent to the Pirates in the trade that brought Jameson Taillon to the Bronx.  Unfortunately for Yajure, his time in Pittsburgh as limited to 16 appearances and 39 1/3 big league innings (for a 8.69 ERA) over the 2021-22 seasons, as he was injured for a large portion of the 2021 campaign and simply didn’t pitch very effectively in either the majors or minors in 2022.

Yajure hasn’t been back to the majors since, as he spent all of 2023 pitching in the Giants’ minor league system after San Francisco claimed him off waivers from the Pirates last winter.  Over 75 1/3 total innings (60 1/3 with Triple-A Sacramento), Yajure struggled to a 6.07 ERA and a 10.79% walk rate, with a decent but unspectacular 22.73% strikeout rate.

Yajure has mostly worked as a starter in the minors, and will probably be part of the Swallows rotation even though he is quoted in the Yahoo Japan as being open to any role.  The righty elected to become a minor league free agent after last season, and he’ll now head to the Tokyo-based club for a new chapter in his career (and a much bigger guaranteed payday than he’d find in minor league ball).  Since he’s only entering his age-26 season, there’s plenty of time for Yajure to land back in the majors in the future, if he can pitch well in NPB and re-establish his value as a starter or perhaps as a relief pitcher.