Masahiro Tanaka, who helped the New York Yankees reach the Major League Baseball playoffs five times in the past seven seasons, said Thursday he will return to Japan for the 2021 season. The 32-year-old right-handed pitcher went 78-46 with 991 strikeouts and a 3.74 earned-run average with the Yankees from 2014 through the 2020 campaign. Tanaka said in a Twitter posting that he will play for the Rakuten Eagles this year. He pitched for the Eagles from 2007 through 2013 before signing a seven-year deal worth $155 million with the Yankees starting in 2014. "I have made a decision on where I will be playing this coming season," Tanaka tweeted to supporters. "I have decided to return to Japan and play for the Rakuten Eagles for the 2021 season. "Thank you for all the love and support you have given me for the past 7 seasons. I feel extremely fortunate for having the opportunity to take the field as a member of the New York Yankees and play in front of all of you passionate fans. It has been an honor and a privilege!" Tanaka's best season with the Yankees was in 2016 when he went 14-4 but New York failed to reach the playoffs. He went 13-12 in 2017 and 11-9 in 2019 when the Yankees advanced to the American League Championship Series, losing each time to the Houston Astros to fall just short of the World Series. Tanaka never won fewer than 11 games and always had a winning record until a 2020 season cut short by the Covid-19 pandemic. Tanaka went 3-3 and the Yankees were eliminated from the playoffs by Tampa Bay. js/rcw