At only 25 years old and ready to leave the Japanese league, pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, He is one of the most sought-after and sought-after free agents by several Major League franchises to have him on their roster for the 2024 season.
One of the teams that has its eye on the Japanese is the New York Yankees. They had one of the worst pitches last season and will have to add new pieces to their rotation if they want to compete next year.
Among those key pieces is Yamamoto. In his seven seasons in the Japanese league, The right-hander left a record of 70 wins and 29 losses, with just 1.87 ERA in 897 innings pitched. Without a doubt one of the great promises in American baseball.
Some reports claim that the Yankees would already have an offer on Yamamoto’s table to join the Bronx team next season. According to Andy Martino of SportNet New York, Even the Yankees would have already reserved the number “18” for the Japanese to wear. Same number that he wears on the Japanese team with which he won the World Baseball Classic in 2023.
Yamamoto’s great qualities on the mound are highly valued; several reports have released an estimate of the contract that the Yankees could offer the Japanese pitcher for 2024. And the figure rises to $200 million dollars for a seven-year relationship with the Bombers.
Yamamoto is not in a hurry to choose
Although the Yankees are the team most in need of a guaranteed pitcher and are one of the largest franchises with the best purchasing power in the Major Leagues, they are not the only team interested in Yamamoto’s services.
Franchises such as the Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies are some of those that are also closely following Yamamoto and will try to offer him the best contract so that the right-hander leans towards one of them.
However, MLB Network analyst Jon Paul Morosi, reported that Yamamoto will probably take his time making a decision. Because the Japanese is a No. 1-caliber pitcher in a rotation at just 25 years old, Morosi believes Yamamoto will be thorough with the entire process.
Likewise, this week a process of interviews via Zoom from Japan would begin with the pitcher to test and listen to the proposals of the different teams. The process will last until January 4, 2024, although it is expected that Yamamoto will have already chosen his new Major League team before that date.
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