Yankees' former home run champion signs new contract in Japan

Luke Voit made the trip to Japan to play the second half of the 2025 baseball season.

The former New York Yankees slugger liked it enough to run it back for 2026.

Voit has re-signed with the Rakuten Eagles, according to Yakyu Cosmopolitan.

He joined the Eagles initially in June, and in 67 games, he batted .300 with 13 home runs and 39 RBI.

Voit's MLB highlight came in the COVID-shortened 2020 season.

The big right-handed slugger launched 22 home runs in just 56 games played that season, an absurd heater for the whole campaign.

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Voit debuted for the Cardinals in 2017, came to New York in 2018, stuck in the Bronx through 2021, then spent time with the Padres, Nationals and Brewers.

He had spent the past two seasons in Mexico. In 2024, he hit .270 with 23 homers. And before departing for Japan in 2025, he already had 11 home runs and a 1.050 OPS.

Voit is crucial to Rakuten. Despite his short stint after joining the Eagles midway through the season, he still led them in home runs.

In February, Voit will turn 35 years old. It seems at this point that his time in MLB is done. But he's still got pop in his bat, and he'll continue to swing it in Japan in the hopes of launching some more baseballs out of the ballpark.

It's also a conveniently early signing for Voit. At the stage of career he's at, players often have to wait out most of the offseason to know what comes next. But in this case, Voit has his 2026 plans set and ready to go for when the spring rolls around.

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