After dealing and missing out on Shohei Ohtani, the Giants are now turning their attention to another Japanese star who is at the top of their MLB free agency wish list.
San Francisco met with right-handed pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto on Sunday, ESPN's Buster Olney reported Monday, citing a source, as the in-demand talent draws significant attention from teams across the league.
Source: The Giants met with pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto yesterday. He has many large market teams bidding for his services.
– Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) December 11, 2023
The meeting comes as other teams are courting Yamamoto, including the New York Yankees, who are meeting with the pitcher on Monday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported. The offer to sign Yamamoto could be as high as $300 million, according to Heyman, who also reported that the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets are considered “big players” in the sweepstakes.
The Yankees contingent flies to LA tomorrow to meet with coveted free agent RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 25. Every major market team is interested. The cost could reach $300 million. The list is long, but the Mets and Dodgers are also considered big players here.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 10, 2023
The Giants closely monitored Yamamoto in advance of his post last month, and president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi flew to Japan this fall while searching for a new manager. On “Giants Talk” in early October, Zaidi called Yamamoto “one of the best starting players in the world.”
The 25-year-old posted a 1.82 ERA over 897 innings with Nippon Professional Baseball's Orix Buffaloes and had eye-popping numbers in strikeout rate (26.43 percent), walk rate (5.9 percent) and Home run rate (1.03 percent).
One of the Giants' biggest offseason needs is a co-ace for Logan Webb, and Yamamoto fits the bill. But San Francisco is not alone in its interest and there is stiff competition for its services.
However, it begs the age-old question: The Giants know who they want to sign, but can they get it done? While the San Francisco fan base is shocked by Ohtani's move to the Los Angeles Dodgers, they certainly hope so.
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