If David Stearns gets exactly what he wants this winter, the New York Mets could boast an All-Japanese trio to top their starting rotation.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that the Mets are going “full bore,” on not only Yoshinobu Yamamoto but another highly-touted Japanese product in southpaw Shota Imanaga.
Yamamoto has long been linked with the Mets — as soon as speculation began that the superstar right-hander would be posted by his NPB club, the Orix Buffaloes — considering former general manager Billy Eppler has succeeded in the Japanese market before. Not only did he sign Kodai Senga last winter where he became the ace of the Mets’ rotation, but he was the man who got Shohei Ohtani’s signature during his time as GM of the Los Angeles Angels.
Eppler, however, resigned just days after Stearns was introduced as president of baseball operations last month, which initially clouded the intensity of the Mets’ desire for Yamamoto. It’s become abundantly clear since then, however, that he’s still a top priority.
New York’s starting rotation is still thin, though they signed former Yankee Luis Severino to a one-year deal in hopes of getting him back on track to bolster the bottom portion of their rotation. But there are notable gaps toward the top as a bona fide ace would bring immense help in front of Senga — who already made it known that he wants Yamoto as a teammate — and Jose Quintana. Yamamoto would provide just that with a career 1.72 ERA across seven seasons.
He was posted last week, thus opening his 45-day negotiating window with MLB clubs. If he cannot come to a deal before that deadline — and there are plenty of suitors — Yamamoto must return to Japan for the 2024 season.
Imanaga was posted by his NPB side, the Yokohama Bay Stars, on Monday. The 30-year-old lefty has provided front-line stuff in Japan, posting a career 64-50 record and 3.18 ERA in 165 games. He’s hit new heights over the last three seasons, posting a 2.51 ERA across his last 467 innings pitched with 479 strikeouts. Imanaga punched out a career-high 188 batters in 159 innings in 2023.
Upon his introduction to the majors, he is projected as a mid-rotation starter.
