The Mets know there is competition aplenty for the services of Yoshinobu Yamamoto — and it looks like Steve Cohen is doing everything he can to make the perfect pitch.
According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the 25-year-old superstar had dinner at the Mets’ owner’s house with his wife Alex, president of baseball operations David Stearns, manager Carlos Mendoza, and pitching coach Jeremy Hefner.
It’s the second documented meeting between the two parties as Cohen and Stearns flew out to Japan three weeks ago to meet with the Yamamoto contingent.
Since then, the three-time Sawamura Award winner has met with the Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, San Francisco Giants, and Philadelphia Phillies
This is a tactic that Cohen has used before with positive results. He hosted Francisco Lindor after the Mets acquired him from Cleveland ahead of the 2021 season and their dinner helped grease the wheels for what ultimately became a 10-year, $341 million extension.
Yamamoto could very well get a deal near that same stratosphere. Offers from the Red Sox and Giants have already reportedly come in at $300 million-plus.
Money usually isn’t an issue for Cohen’s Mets, especially when a player is as vital as Yamamoto is expected to be in Queens should he decide to go there.
New York’s starting rotation is currently being patched together with Kodai Senga’s strong rookie season indicating that he could be a legitimate No. 2 starter in the majors for the next few seasons. Jose Quintana’s performance after rib surgery held him out for half of the season was promising as well for a top-end No. 3 option.
But what could very well be a six-man rotation has nothing but question marks after that. Luis Severino’s Yankees career was derailed by injuries and pitch-tipping problems that prompted a one-year, $13 million “show me” deal with the Mets. David Peterson, Tylor Megill, and Joey Lucchessi haven’t been consistent enough to prove they could be full-season bottom-of-the-rotation options.
It means the Mets need to make a splash and bring in a legitimate ace. While the jump from Japan to the majors has its pitfalls that have seen high-end arms falter in North America, Yamamoto’s stuff is believed to be Teflon to such threats.
Cohen can tout what his team did with Senga, too. The 30-year-old right-hander was ramped up toward All-Stardom after signing ahead of the 2023 season and was properly taken care of by the organization to ensure proper assimilation to life in Major League Baseball.
