The Yomiuri Giants on Tuesday unveiled infielder Shuichi Murata, who has joined the Central League club in a two-year free-agent deal worth ¥500 million.
The 30-year-old Murata filed for free agency from the Yokohama BayStars, now the Yokohama DeNA BayStars, after the 2011 season. Yomiuri manager Tatsunori Hara attended the news conference with Murata at a Tokyo hotel.
"Today I'm making a renewed start. I want to hoist manager Hara in the air in the championship celebration," Murata said. "This year I hit 20 home runs, so next year I'd like to hit 30."