If the Mets or Yankees are going to come away with the signature of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, it’s likely going to cost significantly more than initially expected.
A bidding war appears to be underway for the 25-year-old right-handed ace as he prepares to make the jump from Japan to North America — a plethora of suitors already lining up ready to offer some major money.
According to CBS Sports and The Athletic’s Jim Bowden, both the San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox have put forth offers that are “more than” $300 million. Initial forecasts suggested that Yamamoto would make north of $200 million over an approximate eight-year contract.
The Giants, who signed highly-touted KBO outfielder Jung Hoo Lee last week, have been big-game hunting for the last few seasons, though they have largely come away empty. They made a big run at Aaron Judge but couldn’t lure him away from the Yankees and saw a mega-deal for star shortstop Carlos Correa fall through due to issues with his medicals.
Boston’s starting rotation needs a complete revamp given the injury issues of Chris Sale that robbed him and the Red Sox of the back-end of his prime seasons. For a team that had traded away Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts in recent seasons, an infusion of star power is necessary in the vaunted AL East.
It remains to be seen if the jump in expected price would dissuade either the Mets or the Yankees from their seemingly all-out pursuit of Yamamoto, but recent track history would suggest it would impact the Yankees more than the Mets.
The Yankees’ acquisition of Juan Soto ahead of his walk year means they’ll have to shell out big money to keep him in the Bronx for the long haul even if they need a legitimate No. 2 to set behind Gerrit Cole. Hal Steinbrenner has been frugal in the past and it’s believed that he’s willing to shed those ways for Yamamoto, but how much will be too much?
They met with the three-time NPB MVP last Monday in Los Angeles.
It certainly appears that the Mets should be more desperate for the three-time Sawamura Award winner. They’ve yet to make a big splash this offseason as the belief is that they’re positioning themselves for a World Series push in 2025 — though president of baseball operations David Stearns fully expects a playoff contender this upcoming season.
Kodai Senga and Jose Quintana lead the rotation with Luis Severino, David Peterson, Tylor Megill, and Joey Lucchessi as lower options. They need an ace after their two-headed veteran experiment of Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer failed, and owner Steve Cohen’s pockets are bottomless, especially for a player that the organization might deem an absolute necessity.
Cohen and Stearns flew out to Japan roughly three weeks ago to meet with Yamamoto and his representation before Cohen hosted Yamamoto for dinner at his home on Saturday night.
Of course, there is more competition than just the Giants and Red Sox awaiting the New York clubs.
The Philadelphia Phillies met with Yamamoto on Thursday; a club that isn’t afraid to make a big splash. They’ve brought in the foundation of their contending teams — Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Nick Castellanos — via the free-agent market over the last four seasons.
The most imposing presence continues to be the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have already rocked the baseball world by signing Shohei Ohtani to a historic 10-year, $700 million deal last week.
They aren’t done, however.
Remarkable deferments in Ohtani’s deal allow the Dodgers to pay him just $2 million over each of the next 10 years before paying him the remaining $680 million over the following decade. That provides Los Angeles the space now to make another big-time signing.
They’ve zeroed in on Yamamoto as they rolled out Ohtani and his new teammates and fellow superstars, Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts, in their meeting last week.
