CPBL Foreign Players Updates Volume #427
TSG Hawks News: Sakurai Shuto
On January 24, the TSG Hawks announced the re-signing of Sakurai Shuto (櫻井周斗) for the 2026 CPBL season. The 26-year-old Japanese left-hander will return for his second season in Taiwan. According to the team, Sakurai Shuto arrived in Taiwan yesterday and has already reported to the club.
Sakurai Shuto spent seven seasons (2018–2024) in the NPB system before deciding to seek opportunities elsewhere. Following the 2024 season, he flew to Taiwan to attend a tryout held by the TSG Hawks, where he impressed the team and was offered a contract for the 2025 CPBL season as a backup foreign player.
After waiting patiently for almost the entire 2025 season in the CPBL minor leagues, Sakurai Shuto finally received his call-up and made his CPBL first-team debut on August 17, just before the trade deadline.
Across four appearances, Sakurai Shuto posted a respectable 2.45 ERA and 1.23 WHIP over 22 innings. While his command was somewhat inconsistent, reflected in a high 14 BB% (13 walks), he was still able to go out and get the job done in terms of innings pitched in each start, which is a big plus for a foreign player in the CPBL. That said, this is a very small sample size, and his FIP tells a different story, coming in at 5.17, which sits on the concerning end of the spectrum.
With the re-signing of Sakurai Shuto, the TSG Hawks now have Bradin Hagens, Steven Moya and Eric Stout as their current group of foreign players.
Further Readings
Foreign players come and go. Therefore, we have compiled a foreign player tracker, and I’ll be updating that list regularly to keep pace with the ever-changing roster shuffle throughout the 2026 CPBL season.