Why another Japanese free-agent ace could rock MLB

Despite never throwing a pitch in MLB, Japanese star Yoshinobu Yamamoto could become one of the  highest-paid pitchers in the big leagues.

Along with Shohei Ohtani, Yamamoto is the talk of the winter meetings in Nashville, with multiple teams — the New York Mets and New York Yankees included — expressing heavy interest in the Japanese ace. It won't be cheap to acquire his talents, however, with execs predicting he may secure a deal worth $300 million, per the New York Post's Jon Heyman.

Upon first glance, shelling out that kind of dough for a pitcher who's never played in American professional baseball seems preposterous. A contract upwards of $300 million — not to mention an additional required posting fee to the Orix Buffaloes (Yamamoto's team in Nippon Professional Baseball) — would rival Gerrit Cole's nine-year, $324 million deal with the Yankees. 

No other pitcher has ever signed a contract even worth $250 million, with Washington's Stephen Strasburg coming closest at $245 million.

Yet with each passing day that GMs and execs evaluate the best options on the free-agent market, the resounding consensus is Yamamoto may be the best pitcher available.

One of the main appeals of Yamamoto is his age. At 25, the star right-hander is much younger than other top free-agent pitchers, including Aaron Nola (30), Blake Snell (31) and Jordan Montgomery (30). Despite dominating in Japan for much of his career, Yamamoto seemingly hasn't reached his physical peak.

"I can't quite say I left everything out there on the field, but I've had a terrific journey in pro baseball," Yamamoto said after accepting the Pacific League MVP award on Nov. 28.

The awards Yamamoto's has collected are impressive. Over the last three seasons, he has won the Pacific League MVP and Eiji Sawamura Award — NPB's equivalent of the Cy Young — three consecutive times after posting ERAs of 1.39, 1.68 and 1.16.

Though Yamamoto is certainly one of the best free agents to become available in quite some time, signing him to a monstrous 10-year contract doesn't come without its risks. The 5-foot-10 pitcher is slightly undersized for his position, and will likely need time to adjust to the culture and style of play in the big leagues.

With big market teams such as the Mets, Yankees, Dodgers, Giants and Phillies in need of top-tier pitching, Yamamoto will make a ton of money wherever he lands.