The Toronto Blue Jays will be among the teams to meet with highly-coveted free-agent pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.
Given the Blue Jays scouted a few of his starts in Japan this season, it isn’t surprising to see they’re involved in Yamamoto now that he’s been posted by his Nippon Professional Baseball club, the Orix Buffaloes.
After missing out on Shohei Ohtani, the Blue Jays are now having to quickly pivot to the other game-changing names available this winter. In terms of pitchers, Yamamoto is likely the best option out there when considering his age and his ability.
The 25-year-old right-hander is already among the most successful pitchers in NPB history, with a resume highlighted by Pacific League MVP and Eiji Sawamura Awards (Japan’s Cy Young) in each of the past three seasons. He’s the second pitcher in league history to win the Sawamura three years in a row.
Last season, the ace of the Buffaloes put up a career-best 1.16 ERA, covering 171 innings pitched across 24 starts while striking out 9.3 batters per nine innings and walking only 1.5. For his career at the NPB level, Yamamoto owns a 1.82 ERA over 897 innings in 172 appearances.
The Blue Jays boasted among the best starting rotations in baseball last season but struggled to drive in runs, so logic would indicate adding a big bat should be the team’s top priority this winter. But with a free-agent market thin on quality position players, adding an elite arm such as Yamamoto and looking for a bat through trade might be the ideal path for the Blue Jays.
Of course, as we learned last week, meeting with a free agent who’s a nice fit doesn’t mean a contract is going to be signed. Yamamoto has already met with the New York Yankees and Mets and he’s going to meet with the Boston Red Sox as well.
The L.A. Dodgers are also a possibility for Yamamoto despite having just dished out a $700 million deal to Ohtani. The two-way superstar is having a significant portion of his money paid out after the contract so the Dodgers can continue to spend. According to Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated, Ohtani even “asked for language in his contract that assures the club will make good on its promise to use the savings he created to build a competitive team around him.”
MLB Trade Rumours projected that Yamamoto would sign a nine-year, $225 million contract back in early November when free agency opened. But given how the Ohtani contract changed the landscape of this winter’s market, it’ll surely wind up being more. Maybe he’ll take deferrals to help build L.A.’s All-Star roster, as well.
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