The Orix Buffaloes posting Yoshinobu Yamamoto for MLB free agency added a potential ace to a shallow market that included the likes of Sonny Gray, Aaron Nola and Blake Snell.
While Snell remains available, Gray and Nola have since signed with the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies, respectively.
As for Yamamoto, he has drawn widespread interest from the Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants, among others.
The Dodgers want to add at least two starting pitchers this offseason and are said to be in love with the idea of signing Yamamoto, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic:
The three-time Sawamura Award winner’s market is expected to be quite fruitful, with the Dodgers among the several clubs enamored with the Japanese right-hander and having a clear need to fill with their pitching staff.
The Dodgers’ desire to sign Yamamoto appears to be mutual as David Vassegh of AM 570 L.A. Sports Radio previously reported the 25-year-old is intrigued with the idea of pitching for them.
Yamamoto went 17-6 with a 1.21 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and 176 strikeouts in 24 games for the Buffaloes this year. His career in Japan ended with a third consecutive Eiji Sawamura Award, which is Nippon Professional Baseball’s (NPB) equivalent of MLB’s Cy Young.
Yamamoto has until 2 p.m. PT on January 4, 2024, to choose a team. The club that signs him will be required to pay Orix a posting fee that is equal to 20% of the contract’s first $25 million, 17.5% of the next $25 million and 15% of any additional dollars.
He is in the process of meeting with teams and visited Dodger Stadium on Tuesday, December 12.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto contract could reach $300 million
While original projections had Yamamoto signing with an MLB team for an estimated $200 million, widespread interest could push the total value of the contract to $300 million.
Yamamoto’s agent, Joel Wolfe of Wasserman, said his client has received more interest than any player he could remember.
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