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Galectin (<i>Gal</i>) is a member of a family of β-galactoside-binding lectin. The members of this family play important roles in the recognition of carbohydrate ligands and in various other biological processes. In this study, we identified the gene encoding <i>Gal-9</i> in <i>Pagrus major</i> (<i>PmGal-9</i>) and analyzed its expression in various tissues after pathogen challenge. Alignment analysis revealed that the two galactose-binding lectin domains of the deduced protein were highly conserved among all the teleosts. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that <i>PmGal-9</i> is most closely related to the <i>Gal-9</i> gene of gilthead sea bream. <i>PmGal-9</i> was ubiquitously expressed in all tissues analyzed but was predominantly expressed in the spleen, head kidney, and intestine. After challenges with major microbial pathogens (<i>Edwardsiella piscicida</i>, <i>Streptococcus iniae</i>, or red sea bream iridovirus) of red sea bream, <i>PmGal-9</i> mRNA expression was significantly regulated in most immune-related tissues. These results suggested that <i>PmGal-9</i> not only plays an important role in the immune system of red sea bream but is also a possible inflammatory marker for pathogenic diseases.