The SoftBank Hawks made history on Saturday by becoming the first Japanese team to sign a highly rated American amateur by announcing their acquisition of 19-year-old pitcher Carter Stewart.

Details of the contract were not revealed, but it has been reported in the United States as being a six-year, $7 million deal.

(Carter Stewart)[Getty/Kyodo]

Although a number of Japanese pitchers have turned pro in the United States, this is the first time a Japanese club has had the nerve to go after a top amateur, and teams and leagues on both sides of the Pacific will be watching to see how this will affect pro baseball labor markets.

Stewart was the eighth player taken in Major League Baseball's 2018 draft, but did not sign after the Atlanta Braves reduced his signing bonus due to concerns about a possible wrist injury.

After pitching in junior college this season, Stewart was poised to re-enter next month's MLB draft, but instead chose the Hawks. If Stewart plays six years in Japan, he will be free to sign with any MLB club as a free agent at the age of 25 -- at least two years earlier than he would have been able to do in the United States.

A source has told Kyodo News, however, that the Hawks are hoping Stewart will opt to continue his career in Japan.