Tanaka yet to reach decision on opt-out clause

Masahiro Tanaka has some serious thinking to do about his future in the Bronx.

The New York Yankees right-hander can opt out of the final three years and $67 million remaining on his contract in order to test free agency this winter, but Tanaka said Saturday that he hasn't thought at all about his offseason plans just yet.

"Not at this point in time. Just disappointed in how things unfolded for us," Tanaka told George A. King III and Dan Martin of the New York Post after the Yankees' Game 7 loss to Houston. "I haven't had a chance to think about my contract."

The Yankees' elimination in the American League Championship Series now gives Tanaka a bit more time to mull it over, though he must make his decision and inform the Yankees within three days of the end of the World Series.

Tanaka's 2017 regular season was a rocky one. Although he performed better in the second half and posted high strikeout numbers, the 28-year-old did spend a bit of time on the disabled list and finished his season owning a 4.74 ERA, 1.239 WHIP, and 95 ERA+ - all of those marks representing his personal worsts since leaving Japan for MLB in 2014.

But he was a different man this postseason, pitching to a 0.90 ERA over three October starts while striking out 18 and holding opponents to a .145 average. He also didn't allow a home run in the playoffs.

Related: Why Tanaka should opt out of $67M and ride his playoffs to free agency

That kind of postseason run might serve to boost his value should he test the market. If that's the case, it doesn't appear to have entered Tanaka's mind this month.

"From a player's standpoint, you don't truly understand how you are perceived by other teams, so I can't give you a good answer," Tanaka said. "The season really was a grind and a fight throughout the season. I can say I didn't step away from it. First time for me (with the contract), so I don't know how it is going to work out."