Updated Post: 12/21/23 at 7:52 PM
Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports reports that the Giants have been told they’re out of the bidding for Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Pavlovic said the Giants pushed hard, but the expectation is that the star right-hander will sign in LA or New York.
Updated Post: 12/21/23 at 3:49 PM
Andy Martino of SNY reports the Mets have made a “very substantial” offer to free agent starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The Mets have met with the star right-hander twice, once in Japan and then dinner at the Cohens.
Updated Post: 12/21/23 at 12:51 AM
The Phillies are the latest team to be reported to make an offer to Yoshinobu Yamamoto, as reported by Matt Gelb of The Athletic and Alex Coffey of The Inquirer.
A source told The Inquirer, per Coffey, that the Phillies are planning to be “aggressive,” though it’s unlikely they’ll be the highest bidder. The Phillies met with Yamamoto last week and apparently included a FaceTime from Bryce Harper as part of their presentation.
Updated Post: 12/18/23 at 2:42 PM
Jeff Passan of ESPN reports that the alleged $300 million bids for Yoshinobu Yamamoto are inaccurate. Teams have been asked to not discuss terms publicly. However, Passan notes that can all change as of today, as bidding is expected to “officially” begin.
Updated Post: 12/18/23 at 2:12 PM
According to Andy Martino of SNY, the Mets made an initial offer to Yoshinobu Yamamoto prior to their first meeting in Japan. However, after the second meeting at Cohen’s home, no additional offer was made.
Martino notes that several teams made early offers after Yamamoto was posted to show their seriousness in the pitcher, but these offers aren’t final.
Updated Post: 12/17/23 at 9:57 AM
The New York Post‘s Joel Sherman reports that Yoshinobu Yamamoto had dinner Saturday night with Mets owners Steve and Alex Cohen, president of baseball operation David Stearns, manager Carlos Mendoza, and pitching coach Jeremy Hefner. The dinner was at the Cohens’ house.
The courting is the second known meeting with Yamamoto after Cohen and Stearns flew to Japan to meet with the 25-year-old phenom. There have been no other second meetings with teams reported.
Andy Martino says no offer has been made yet, but the Red Sox and Giants both have reportedly offered Yamamoto deals north of $300 million.
Updated Post: 12/16/23 at 9:11 PM
The Giants and Red Sox have both made offers to Yoshinobu Yamamoto that exceed $300 million, according to MLB Analyst Jim Bowden.
Many speculated that Yamamoto would receive a contract worth over $300 million but this report officially confirms that clubs value the right-hander at that price.
The Dodgers, Yankees, and Mets were listed before the report as favorites to land Yamamoto. However, no number value has been attached to those three clubs like the Giants and Red Sox.
Updated Post: 12/14/23 at 6:35 PM
Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that Japanese right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto continued his tour of the top-spending teams in baseball on Thursday, this time with the Phillies.
The 25-year-old has already met with the Dodgers, Yankees, Giants, and Mets.
Updated Post: 12/13/23 at 4:15 PM
Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that right-handed pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto has meetings planned with the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, and Philadelphia Phillies.
Yamamoto met with the Dodgers on Tuesday, the Yankees on Monday, and previously met with the Giants and Mets.
Heyman also said it’s “likely” Yamamoto gets the longest contract ever for a pitcher. There’s also talk that the contract could break the record Gerrit Cole‘s $324 million deal for the largest given to a pitcher.
Updated Post: 12/13/23 at 2:43 PM
The Dodgers recently signed superstar Shohei Ohtani, and before he even had his introductory press conference, he helped out the organization by being part of the pitch to Japanese star pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The Athletic reports that the Dodgers pitch on Tuesday included Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman.
We know that Mets owner Steve Cohen flew to Japan to meet with Yamamoto, and that Yankees and Giants have also hosted meetings with the 25-year-old stud pitcher.
Updated Post: 12/12/23 at 5:17 PM
The Dodgers are meeting with Yamamoto on Tuesday, according to Russell Dorsey. The Dodgers are one of about a half-dozen teams Yamamoto will meet with, as detailed below.
Original Post: 12/12/23 at 8:28 AM
The baseball world was shocked on Monday night when it found out that Shohei Ohtani‘s contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers included $680 million in deferred money. While the contract might not actually be as wild as it seems, as noted here by MLBTR and we will touch on it later today, it does certainly mean the Dodgers can continue spending this offseason. And that’s what they intend to do, according to multiple reports they are still right in the middle of the sweepstakes for Japanese right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tom Verducci of SI reports that the Dodgers are also eyeing closer Josh Hader.
Yamamoto has already met with the Mets, Giants, and Yankees, and is expected to meet with the Red Sox soon per Mark Feinsand of MLB dot com. The Blue Jays will likely meet with Yamamoto too, and we know Yamamoto already spent time in Los Angeles before the winter meetings. With most of the big market teams involved, it’s rumored that Yamamoto’s contract could now eclipse the $300 million mark.
Hader, 29, is coming off a 2023 season that saw him post a 1.28 ERA and strikeout 86 batters in 56 1/3 innings. Clearly the top closer on the market, Hader will look for a deal close to the Edwin Díaz record-setter the Mets agreed to last year.
