With the MLB Winter Meetings quickly approaching, all eyes remain on Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the two top free agents available that have mostly held up the rest of the market.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are widely considered the favorites for Ohtani as the expectation is the two-way star is closing in on making his decision. They are also among the top suitors for Yamamoto as they look to address their pitching staff that currently lacks an ace and depth.
However, they are facing competition from their rival San Francisco Giants for both of their services. According to J.P. Morosi of MLB Network, the Giants are focused on acquiring one of the two and making an aggressive push for them:
“The Giants are, right now, set on trying to acquire one or the other. They’re pursuing both very aggressively.”
The Giants previously chased after Aaron Judge and nearly had an agreement with him before the superstar returned to the New York Yankees. They also went after Carlos Correa and agreed to a deal before a failed physical landed the shortstop back with the Minnesota Twwins.
As currently constructed, the Giants’ roster lacks upper echelon talent, so their ownership and front office is looking for someone to lead their franchise:
“They have been trying for so long to land the iconic player, and in the midst of all of that, they had Buster Olney retire, perhaps earlier than they expected. This is a flagship franchise in Major League Baseball that is looking for a new identity.”
Despite the Giants’ efforts, they made need to focus their attention solely on Yamamoto. With the expectation being that Ohtani signs within the next week, some teams have started to drop out of the bidding with the Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Angels believed to be the teams still involved.
It’s unclear if the Giants are still involved or not, but based on Ohtani’s open desire for winning and his reported preference to play in a beneficial ballpark, it makes them appear to be a long shot for his services.
Giants expected to make highest bid for Shohei Ohtani
Despite various factors potentially working against them, the Giants may end up making the most lucrative contract offer to Ohtani. The franchise has the money to spend and the need for his services, but all reports also indicate Ohtani is more focused on finding the right fit than the highest salary.
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