Could Teruaki Sato Be Alec Bohm’s Replacement For Phillies?

Aug 21, 2026 03:20 AM - 1 hour ago 2

The days of Alec Bohm successful Philly are fading fast.

Bohm, who’ll participate free agency this offseason, will almost surely motion elsewhere this upcoming winter, leaving down a ace successful the Phillies’ infield that will request patching up. Bohm has been the team’s superior 3rd baseman for 7 seasons, playing much than 700 games astatine the basking area since his 2020 callup.

Enter the evident question: Who’s connected 3rd for the Phils adjacent season?

Enter the not-so evident answer: How astir Teruaki Sato, the Japanese slugger for the Hanshin Tigers?

MLB insider Jon Heyman has linked the Phillies among a fewer different teams to Sato. The Phils reportedly person dispatched scouts to measure the 27-year-old up of his anticipated posting from Nippon Professional Baseball.

Sato, who has played much than 500 games astatine 3rd for the Tigers, is 1 of the astir fearsome NPB hitters. In 2025, he launched 40 location runs, drove successful 102 runs and won the MVP. And done 103 games this season, the lefty slugger is batting a career-high .315 pinch 27 bombs and a 1.026 OPS.

Check retired Sato annihilating a Blake Snell fastball successful a 2025 accumulation game:

Now a reality zap for Phillies fans pining for Sato: While different MLB clubs person infused rosters pinch Japanese talent, the Phils person struck retired (literally) successful recruiting players retired of Japan. They’ve signed conscionable 1 master player: pitcher Koyo Aoyagi, who inked a minor-league statement successful January 2025 but got released six months later, having ne'er made the large convention squad.

Lest we hide Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s infamous snubbing. Three off-seasons ago, the Phillies made the largest connection for Yamamoto aft reportedly having a beardown gathering pinch him. He yet chose the Dodgers, signing for 12 years and $325 million, contempt Philly’s connection being financially superior.

But a Sato signing could erase Yamamoto’s dissing of the Phillies while being their champion fall-back action to switch Bohm – particularly aft what’s happened to their apical imaginable Aidan Miller.

Not agelong ago, Phillies guidance foresaw Miller arsenic Bohm’s inevitable replacement. But Miller’s profession has been sidetracked owed to a chronic backmost information that has destroyed his 2026 season.

Miller has not taken a azygous at-bat this year. He underwent room – a minimally invasive radiofrequency ablation – successful early June to dainty discogenic symptom and facet inflammation successful his lumbar spine.

Even if Miller returns, he whitethorn request a afloat play of minor-league shot to reignite his development.

An in-house action for 3rd guidelines could beryllium Bryson Stott, who has slid complete there, during the Phillies’ infield reshuffle to accommodate 2nd baseman Luis Arraez, who the team nabbed astatine the waste and acquisition deadline. The domino effect of the Arraez woody has bumped Bohm to first and Bryce Harper to rightfield.

But Arraez will beryllium a free supplier aft the play and there’s nary guarantee he’ll return to Philly.

So, that leaves the Phillies pinch the looming dilemma successful the infield, and it could beryllium solved if they motion Sato.