By Joiner Martínez
28 Oct 2023, 10:47 PM EDT
Both New York teams, the Yankees and Mets, were eliminated from the Major League postseason and in this situation they could enter a million-dollar auction for Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Yamamoto will undoubtedly be one of the most coveted starting pitchers in the upcoming free agency. Once the World Series between Rangers and Diamondbacks ends, the 30 MLB teams will be able to activate and begin to move their chips with the aim of strengthening their squads for the 2024 season.
In such a situation, the New York Yankees would be preparing a gigantic contract offer for the right-handed pitcher.
The Yankees’ interest in Yamamoto is so real that even the general manager of the
Bronx Bombers, Brian Cashman, traveled to Japan to see him pitch with his Orix Buffaloes team, in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
Salary projections created by some MLB experts, Yamamoto is expected to receive a contract around $200 million dollars to make his MLB debut in 2024.
Mets proposal for Yoshinobu Yamamoto
For their part, the New York Mets are beginning to evaluate the moves they will make for the 2024 MLB season and it seems that they would be willing to pay a million to keep Yamamoto.
“A person linked to the management of a team that could go for Yamamoto indicated that there is a good possibility that the offer for the Japanese pitcher will start somewhere in the range of $200 million dollars over six or seven years,” he declared. New York Post journalist Mike Puma.
Masahiro Tanaka’s seven-year, $155 million contract with the Yankees before the 2014 season is the largest major league contract received by a pitcher out of Japan.
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