The Japanese posting fee for Masahiro Tanaka will actually be split into four payments over 18 months, according to Major League sources.

This is part of the new rules for signing Japanese players that are posted by their teams. The maximum posting fee is now $20 million, which is what the Rakuten Golden Eagles will receive for Tanaka.

The schedule will be as follows:

• 10 percent of posting fee due within 14 days of the submission of the posted player's contract
• 17 percent of the posting fee due within six months of the submission of the posted player's contract
• 17 percent of the posting fee due within 12 months of the submission of the posted player's contract
• 16 percent of the posting fee due within 18 months of the submission of the posted player's contract