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Yoshinobu Yamamoto

East Notes: Mets, Rays, Bautista

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The Mets are among several reported finalists for the services of right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who club owner Steve Cohen traveled to Japan to meet with earlier this month. All indications point to a very serious pursuit of the offseason’s top free agent starting pitcher, but The Athletic’s Will Sammon suggests that intense pursuit should not be taken as an indication the Mets plan to spend aggressively on long-term, top-of-the-market free agents this offseason. Sammon reports that the club views Yamamoto, 25, as something of a unique case thanks to his front-of-the-rotation potential and exceptional youth for a free agent.

Should they fail to land Yamamoto, Sammon suggests that the club doesn’t plan on pivoting to other top-of-the-market free agents such as Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery. Rather, Sammon suggests the Mets could pivot to a mid-market arm like Lucas Giolito, who the club has previously been reported to have interest in as they focus on shorter term, one- and two-year contracts to plug holes on their roster. Indications have percolated since the trade deadline that the Mets view 2024 as something of a transitory year where they hope to thread the needle between staying competitive and focusing on 2025 and beyond, and Sammon’s report is the latest among those signals.

In addition to their aforementioned goal of securing pitching help, Sammon suggests that the club could look to add a regular outfielder to their lineup as well as a right-handed hitting third baseman to replace the injured Ronny Mauricio in the club’s third base mix alongside Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, and Joey Wendle. Michael A. Taylor, Adam Duvall, Tommy Pham, and Joc Pederson are among the outfield options who may be available on short-term deals, while the likes of Gio Urshela and Justin Turner could help the club solidify its infield mix.

More from around MLB’s East divisions…

  • Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander spoke to reporters (including Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times) today in the wake of the trade that sent right-hander Tyler Glasnow and outfielder Manuel Margot to the Dodgers. While Neander acknowledged that the club loses some “certainty” in dealing way Glasnow and Margot, he also suggested that he sees both Pepiot and DeLuca as players who could impact the big league club in the near future Neander was particularly effusive in his praise of Pepiot, who he suggested has “a very good chance to be a good major-league starter” and could be “very close” to reaching that potential. Per Topkin, the deal will save the Rays $33MM in 2024 as Tampa Bay will pay the Dodgers just $2MM of the $4MM cash included in the trade this season, with the remaining $2MM to be paid out next offseason in the event that the Dodgers decline their $12MM option on Margot, which would cover the $2MM buyout on that option.
  • Orioles closer Felix Bautista spoke to reporters this evening, including MLB.com’s Jake Rill and AJ Cassavell, and provided an update on his health after undergoing Tommy John surgery back in October. Bautista told the pair that his recovery from the surgery is going well, and that he’s “doing everything he can” to get back onto the field. That return to the mound won’t occur in 2024, as Bautista is expected to miss the entire campaign while rehabbing. With the right-hander expected back in time for Spring Training 2025, Bautista and the Orioles got together on a two-year extension upon the announcement of his surgery back in September.

Phillies Meeting With Yoshinobu Yamamoto

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Phillies officials are meeting with right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto this afternoon, tweets John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia. Philadelphia joins the Mets, Yankees, Dodgers, Giants, Blue Jays and Red Sox among the teams that has met or is scheduled to chat with the Japanese star.

Yamamoto’s camp has made the rounds this week. The 25-year-old has gotten attention from the majority of large-market franchises, particularly those on the coasts. Last week, Will Sammon of the Athletic suggested that seven teams had emerged as strong suitors for the 5’10” pitcher. With seven clubs known to have meetings scheduled with Yamamoto, it’s possible the field is essentially finalized. In a full column, Jon Heyman of the New York Post writes that there’s no indication the Cubs or Cardinals are planning to meet with Yamamoto.

Of the group that seems to remain in the mix, Philadelphia might have the longest odds. The Phils already made one major rotation splash this winter, retaining Aaron Nola on a seven-year, $172MM pact. A starting five of Nola, Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suárez, Taijuan Walker and Cristopher Sánchez is already strong. The Phils could certainly bump Sánchez back into relief to make way for Yamamoto, who is regarded as a likely top-of-the-rotation arm in the majors. Yet it’s possible teams like the Dodgers, Mets or Yankees will feel greater pressure to dish out a megadeal for rotation help.

Yamamoto is coming off a 1.21 ERA in 164 innings, arguably the best performance of an exceptional career in Japan. He has been named NPB’s best pitcher in each of the past three seasons. MLBTR predicted a nine-year, $225MM guarantee at the start of the offseason. In recent weeks, there’s been increasing speculation that a deal could approach or exceed $300MM. The signing team would owe a posting fee to the Orix Buffaloes on top of the guarantee to Yamamoto.

Roster Resource projects the Phillies payroll around $237MM for the upcoming season. That’s a little shy of the $243MM range that they carried to start this year. The Phils have roughly $252MM in luxury tax calculations, which puts them into the first tier of penalization and not far off the $257MM second threshold.

Mariners “Rebuffed” Red Sox’ Interest In Young Starting Pitchers

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The Red Sox’ offseason search for starting pitching hasn’t yet produced any results, although that’s in large part due to the holdup that Yoshinobu Yamamoto is placing on the market. Alex Speier of the Boston Globe breaks down the Sox’ interest in Yamamoto and the manner in which said interest has thus far prevented them from making offers elsewhere on the market (e.g. Aaron Nola, Sonny Gray, Eduardo Rodriguez). With Boston hoping to lure Yamamoto to Fenway Park, it’s at least understandable if the team doesn’t feel comfortable putting forth offers in the vicinity that those other pitchers signed — ranging from $75MM to $172MM — while simultaneously keeping enough powder dry to put forth the type of massive offer Yamamoto will command.

The Yamamoto interest hasn’t been as much of a detriment on a trade market that has largely remained idle, however. Speier reports that the Sox approached the Mariners about their cadre of controllable starting pitchers but were generally rebuffed. Whether that was due to the quality of their offer (or lack thereof), or simply due to the Mariners being unwilling to move someone from the George Kirby, Logan Gilbert, Bryce Miller, Bryan Woo quartet isn’t clear.

However, Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto suggested at last week’s Winter Meetings that a trade of one of their young big league starters doesn’t seem likely (link via Adam Jude of the Seattle Times). Dipoto acknowledged “constant” inquiries regarding his young rotation before casting doubt on whether he’d actually make a move involving anyone from the bunch.

“We’ll see what the market bears,” said Dipoto, who’s entering his ninth season as the leader of Mariners baseball operations. “We are going to lean into the thing we do well, and if opportunity presents itself, we have to listen. But by and large, we pitch it; we catch it. We’re very good at developing young players, and we’re going to continue to focus on those things.”

On the one hand, the Mariners and Red Sox seem like natural trade partners. The Mariners are deep controllable young pitchers who’ve had MLB experience. The Red Sox have several promising, controllable hitters who’ve made their big league debuts already (e.g. Triston Casas, Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela) and, in some cases, had a good bit of success.

The price to acquire controllable young pitching is always steep, however — particularly when talking about players who’ve already had as much success as Kirby and Gilbert or those with six full seasons of control, like Miller and Woo. The Mariners could well prefer more established hitters. Similarly, the Sox might be loath to part with much in the way of immediate MLB production in the lineup, as the free-agent market isn’t exactly deep in bats to replace any outgoing hitters.

To be clear, there’s no indication the two parties can’t or won’t revisit talks — just as there’s no indication the Mariners will staunchly turn away any and all inquiries on their excellent rotation. To the contrary, Dipoto acknowledged to Jude that for the “right player” with another club, the Mariners “will consider just about anything.”

It’s been a generally quiet offseason for both teams in terms of notable additions. Boston has picked up Tyler O’Neill in a trade with the Cardinals, but the offseasons of Boston and particularly Seattle thus far have drawn more headlines for their subtractions than their new acquisitions. The Sox traded Alex Verdugo to the archrival Yankees, while the M’s have traded away Eugenio Suarez, Jarred Kelenic and Marco Gonzales. In doing so, they’ve substantially reduced the team strikeout rate and freed up some resources to perhaps bring in some offense via the free-agent and/or trade market. Seattle has been connected to free agents Jorge Soler and J.D. Martinez over the past week, while rumored trade interest has included the likes of Randy Arozarena, Isaac Paredes, Josh Naylor and (before he was traded to Boston) O’Neill. The Red Sox, meanwhile, continue to search for ways to upgrade their starting staff.

Dodgers Met With Yoshinobu Yamamoto On Tuesday

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Dec. 13: Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman were all present at Dodger Stadium yesterday for the team’s recruitment pitch to Yamamoto, per Fabian Ardaya and Ken  Rosenthal of The Athletic. Dorsey tweets that Will Smith, Yamamoto’s potential batterymate if he signs in Los Angeles, was also present.

Dec. 12: The Dodgers met with Yoshinobu Yamamoto today as the star right-hander continues his North American tour, reports Russell Dorsey of Bally Sports (on X). They’re the sixth team known to chat with the 25-year-old free agent.

Mets officials flew to Japan to speak with Yamamoto last week. The pitcher and his camp are now traveling around the U.S. and Canada as they interview with other teams in the mix. Yamamoto met with the Giants two days ago and the Yankees yesterday. He’ll chat with the Red Sox and Blue Jays later in the week.

After signing Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers are on the hunt for rotation help. L.A. has been linked to virtually every starting pitcher of note in free agency or trade. The Dodgers have Walker Buehler and Bobby Miller locked into two rotation spots. They figure to at least two starters to a middle to back end that includes Ryan Pepiot, Emmet Sheehan, Michael Grove and Ryan Yarbrough while Tony Gonsolin and Dustin May work back from surgery.

Yamamoto is widely viewed as the best remaining free agent. He is increasingly expected to command a contract approaching or exceeding $300MM, to say nothing of the posting fee an MLB team would owe to the Orix Buffaloes.

While Yamamoto is easily the top pitcher coming over from Japan this offseason, he’s not the only one. Left-hander Shota Imanaga, who turned 30 in September, was posted by the Yokohama BayStars. He’s coming off a 2.80 ERA with an excellent 29.2% strikeout rate over 148 innings. In an appearance on MLB Network this afternoon, Jon Morosi indicated the Dodgers had some level of interest in Imanaga. Teams like the Cubs, Mets, Red Sox and Tigers have also been tied to the southpaw at points this offseason.

Roster Resource calculates the Dodgers’ luxury tax number for 2024 just south of $220MM. That leaves them $17MM below the base threshold and well shy of their estimated $267MM CBT number from last season.

MLBTR Poll: Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s Market

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With Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto off the board, one of the next big questions of the offseason is what awaits NPB ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The three-time defending Sawamura Award winner as Japan’s top pitcher is widely regarded as the best remaining free agent. Hitting the open market at a nearly unprecedented age of 25, he is generally viewed as a top-of-the-rotation starter.

Yamamoto is coming off a season in which he turned in a 1.21 ERA across 164 innings. He fanned nearly 27% of opposing hitters while issuing walks at a meager 4.4% clip. It was arguably the best season in an illustrious NPB career that has seen the 5’10” righty post a 1.82 ERA in just under 900 innings at baseball’s second-highest level.

The Athletic’s Eno Sarris examined Yamamoto’s repertoire on a pitch-by-pitch basis yesterday. Sarris raved about Yamamoto’s fastball, split, curveball combination and praised the strong command he showed when pitching in the World Baseball Classic last spring. He concurred that Yamamoto projects as a top-flight starter, an assessment shared by evaluators with whom MLBTR spoke at the start of the offseason.

MLBTR predicted Yamamoto would receive a nine-year, $225MM guarantee. Recent indications are that he’ll surpass that mark. Jeff Passan of ESPN wrote last week that there’s growing belief within the industry that an MLB team’s expenditure on Yamamoto will top $300MM.

Passan’s suggestion of a $300MM+ investment includes the posting fee which an MLB team would owe to the Orix Buffaloes. (MLBTR’s contract prediction was separate from the posting fee.) That’s calculated as 20% of a contract’s first $25MM ($5MM), 17.5% of the next $25MM ($4.375MM) and 15% of any further spending. A $275MM guarantee for Yamamoto, for example, would come with a $43.125MM posting sum that’d push the overall investment by the MLB club to $318.125MM.

As shown on MLBTR’s contract tracker, Gerrit Cole’s nine-year, $324MM deal with the Yankees is the only $300MM+ contract for a one-way pitcher in MLB history. There’s a chance Yamamoto becomes the second pitcher to cross that threshold and at least an outside shot that he beats Cole’s guarantee to establish a new high-water mark.

It doesn’t hurt to have essentially every large-market franchise enamored with his upside. Yamamoto has seemingly been the top target for the Mets all offseason. He’s now the #1 priority for the Yankees and Dodgers after their respective splashes for Soto and Ohtani. The Giants and Blue Jays missed on Soto and Ohtani and are still motivated to make significant splashes. San Francisco made one such move yesterday by signing star KBO outfielder Jung Hoo Lee to a six-year deal, but even after that hefty expenditure the Giants should still have the payroll and luxury-tax space to accommodate Yamamoto.

Yamamoto hosted Mets owner Steve Cohen and president of baseball operations David Stearns in Japan last week. The pitcher is now on a North American tour of his own. He reportedly visited the Giants on Sunday and sat down with Yankee officials on Monday. He met with the Dodgers last night and is slated to meet with the Blue Jays and Red Sox later in the week. One or two others could still be involved.

The Buffaloes posted Yamamoto on November 20. That technically gives him until January 4 to sign, although the process isn’t expected to take that long. Both Passan and Will Sammon of the Athletic suggested last week the touted pitcher is likely to sign well before his posting window closes. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he has chosen his MLB team before Christmas.

How does the MLBTR readership anticipate Yamamoto’s bidding playing out? Where will he land and how lofty a guarantee will he secure?

How Much Will Yamamoto Be Guaranteed (Excluding Posting Fee)?
$301-325MM 27.43% (5,257 votes)
$276-300MM 21.81% (4,180 votes)
$251-275MM 13.89% (2,663 votes)
$226-250MM 10.73% (2,056 votes)
$326-350MM 10.09% (1,933 votes)
$200-225MM 6.64% (1,272 votes)
More than $350MM 6.63% (1,270 votes)
Less than $200MM 2.79% (535 votes)
Total Votes: 19,166

 

Where Will Yamamoto Sign?
Yankees 22.48% (3,933 votes)
Dodgers 21.92% (3,834 votes)
Mets 17.29% (3,024 votes)
Giants 13.31% (2,329 votes)
Red Sox 11.96% (2,092 votes)
Other (specify in comments) 6.91% (1,209 votes)
Blue Jays 6.12% (1,071 votes)
Total Votes: 17,492

 

Red Sox, Blue Jays To Meet With Yoshinobu Yamamoto

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NPB ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto is in the process of meeting with interested MLB clubs and is slated to meet with both the Red Sox and Blue Jays in the coming days, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. Yamamoto met with the Yankees yesterday and the Giants on Sunday. Mets owner Steve Cohen reportedly flew to Japan to meet with Yamamoto before his current slate of team visits in North America. That’s a total of five known teams meeting with Yamamoto, and Feinsand suggests another two or three teams could also hold meetings.

The Blue Jays, after missing out on Shohei Ohtani, figure to have both the motivation and money to pursue a significant upgrade (or upgrades) to other areas of the roster. Yamamoto obviously wouldn’t impact the 2024 lineup like signing Ohtani would have, but installing him into a rotation that also features Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios and Chris Bassitt would make for a formidable top four. If Alek Manoah can regain his 2022 form or if Yusei Kikuchi can continue his 2023 performance levels, a Toronto rotation including Yamamoto could rank as one of the best in the game and have solid depth beyond the top quintet.

Over in Boston, the need is arguably more acute. The Red Sox’ rotation is rife with question marks, perhaps none bigger than what the team can expect from oft-injured top starter Chris Sale. The 34-year-old lefty was serviceable in 2023 when healthy, but he was again limited by injury. Last year’s 120 2/3 innings were Sale’s most since 2019. He posted a 4.30 ERA in that time, albeit with excellent strikeout and walk rates of 29.4% and 6.6%, respectively. Beyond Sale, Boston’s rotation ranges from inexperienced to inconsistent; Brayan Bello, Garrett Whitlock, Tanner Houck and Kutter Crawford are all in the mix for innings.

Both teams can likely fit a massive commitment to Yamamoto onto the long-term books without significant issue. Doing so for the Jays would raise further questions about the team’s ability and/or desire to extend cornerstones Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., but those questions will exist in some regard anyway, as both are now two years from free agency and still going year-to-year in arbitration. Toronto will see Kikuchi and reliever Yimi Garcia come off the books in 2025. Bassitt, Bichette, Guerrero and Chad Green are all off the books come 2026. Roster Resource pegs the Blue Jays’ payroll commitments over the next three years at approximately $203MM, $116MM and $65MM. Berrios is their only player signed beyond 2026.

For the Red Sox, the long-term outlook is similarly open for a sizable free-agent deal. Sale’s $145MM contract expires after the upcoming 2024 season. Rafael Devers, Trevor Story and Masataka Yoshida are all signed through at least 2027. However, as it stands, the Sox only have about $76MM on the books in ’25 and similar or declining totals thereafter. That payroll outlook, combined with the considerable uncertainty that permeates the starting staff, is why the Sox are active in top tiers of the rotation market and have been prominently linked to the likes of Yamamoto and Jordan Montgomery.

Yamamoto, 25, is among the most sought-after players to ever make the jump from Nippon Professional Baseball to Major League Baseball. He’s won three straight MVP Awards and Sawamura Awards (NPB’s Cy Young equivalent) and just wrapped up a season that saw him post a 1.21 ERA in 164 innings. Yamamoto has a career 1.72 ERA in seven NPB seasons, including sub-2.00 marks in four of his past five campaigns. MLB scouts and evaluators generally view him as a legitimate No. 1-2 starter in a big league rotation. A contract north of $200MM has long seemed plausible, but recent speculation about a deal closer to $300MM has begun to arise.

Because Yamamoto has under nine years of NPB service, he’s only available to MLB clubs via the MLB/NPB posting system. Any team that signs Yamamoto will not only owe him the value of the contract agreed upon by the two parties, but also a release fee to the Orix Buffaloes — Yamamoto’s now-former team. That fee is equivalent to 20% of the contract’ first $25MM ($5MM), 17.5% of the next $25MM ($4.375MM) and 15% of any dollars paid to Yamamoto thereafter.

Giants Met With Yoshinobu Yamamoto

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The Giants met with star NPB right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto on Sunday, reports Buster Olney of ESPN. They’re at least the third big-market club to meet with Yamamoto in just over a week’s time; the Yankees are reportedly meeting with the 25-year-old today, and Mets owner Steve Cohen flew to Japan recently to meet with the reigning three-time NPB MVP and Sawamura Award winner (the latter of which is NPB’s Cy Young equivalent).

Interest in Yamamoto on the Giants’ behalf has been expected all winter. It’s not clear exactly which members of the team brass met with Yamamoto, though it’s fair to presume that president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and ownership representatives were present. Half the league (if not more) showed some level of interest when the soon-to-be former Orix Buffaloes ace was posted for MLB clubs. The Giants are one of seven clubs characterized by Will Sammon of The Athletic as a “serious” suitor for Yamamoto, joining the Dodgers, Yankees, Mets and Blue Jays in that regard (plus another two unnamed teams).

The Dodgers, of course, have since signed Shohei Ohtani to a precedent-shattering $700MM contract. Whether they’d make another commitment that most expect to comfortably exceed $200MM remains to be seen. The Giants and Blue Jays, in particular, are two teams that were deeply involved in the bidding for Ohtani and can now pivot to Yamamoto. The two New York clubs have thus far been the most oft-linked clubs to Yamamoto, though that’s certainly not a clear signal that he’ll end up pitching for either.

Signing Yamamoto would require a significant shift in ideology for a Giants front office that in five years under Farhan Zaidi has not signed a free agent pitcher to a contract of more than three years in length. San Francisco did ink current ace Logan Webb to a five-year contract, but that bought out all of Webb’s would-be arbitration seasons as well. Signing Yamamoto would be another proposition entirely: commanding as many as seven, eight, nine or perhaps even ten years to the ballyhooed righty at market-rate prices.

The Giants have been far more wary of paying pitchers who are already into their 30s — hence the ill-fated decision to let Kevin Gausman sign with the Blue Jays on what now looks like a bargain five-year contract. Yamamoto’s youth makes him an atypical case that San Francisco decision-makers could consider an exception, though they’ll be far from alone in that line of thinking.

Payroll-wise, the Giants are positioned as well — if not better — than any of Yamamoto’s known top suitors. Webb, Mitch Haniger and Taylor Rogers are the only players guaranteed any money beyond the 2024 season, and the latter two are both off the books after the 2025 campaign. (Haniger technically could be sooner; he can opt out of the final year and $15.5MM on his contract next offseason, though he’d need a bounceback campaign to consider doing so.)

The Giants are known to be seeking star-caliber players after missing out on previous targets like Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Carlos Correa and now Ohtani. Zaidi was recently extended through the 2026 season, giving him some additional job security, but he’s also surely aware that in five seasons under his watch, the Giants have missed the postseason and finished .500 or worse on four occasions. The team’s farm system also hasn’t produced any star players during this stretch, although catcher Patrick Bailey and lefty Kyle Harrison certainly showed promise in 2023’s rookie efforts.

San Francisco’s rotation is also in dire need of both innings and upside. The Giants regularly leaned on openers and bullpen games in the season’s final months. Webb and veteran Alex Cobb are the only set-in-stone rotation members, but Cobb is also coming off hip surgery. The aforementioned Harrison will surely get a look but isn’t yet entrenched on the staff after serving up an average of 2.08 homers per nine frames in his rookie campaign. Swingman Ross Stripling could start or work out of the bullpen. Anthony DeSclafani — Zaidi’s largest free-agent pitching deal, at three years and $36MM — is still under contract for the 2024 season but pitched just 99 2/3 innings in 2023 due to injury. Twenty-five-year-old righty Keaton Winn posted a 6.04 ERA in his first five MLB starts this past season.

Yamamoto would be a sensible target for the Giants, although in a free-agent market that’s fairly deep in arms, San Francisco has alternative options if the team feels the bidding gets out of hand. That’s less true in a thin market for position players, where the Giants also figure to be active. Zaidi has spoken about adding to his outfield in particular, with Cody Bellinger standing as an oft-speculated fit for the Giants.

Whoever ultimately signs Yamamoto will owe his former club a posting/release fee equivalent to the sum of 20% of the contract’s first $25MM, 17.5% of the next $25MM and 15% of any dollars thereafter. A $225MM investment in Yamamoto, for instance, would cost the signing club an additional $35.625MM. Future money paid out via incentives or contractual options is also subject to that 15% rate. Yamamoto has won three straight Sawamura Awards in Japan and just posted a career-best 1.21 ERA in 2023. He’s logged a sub-2.00 ERA in four of his past five seasons while punching out better than 27% of his opponents against a tidy 5.7% walk rate.

NL Notes: Alonso, Yamamoto, Dodgers, Brewers

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The Mets and first baseman Pete Alonso have not engaged in extension talks this offseason, according to Tim Healey of Newsday. Healey adds that it’s as of yet unclear if the club intends to broach the subject of a long-term deal with Alonso this winter.

Reports last month indicated that Alonso hopes to surpass recent long-term deals signed by the likes of Matt Olson and Freddie Freeman, and the 29-year-old changed representation to the Boras Corporation earlier this offseason. For his part, Scott Boras told reporters (including Healey) at the Winter Meetings that he’s spoken to president of baseball operations David Stearns and that he and Alonso are “all ears” regarding potential negotiations. Healey goes on to suggest that Alonso could be on track to follow in the footsteps of teammate Brandon Nimmo. Much like Alonso, Nimmo switched representation to Boras in the final offseason before he hit the open market. Any contract discussions with the Mets that offseason didn’t result in an extension, leaving Nimmo to hit free agency that winter. Upon hitting the open market, he re-upped with the Mets on an eight-year, $162MM contract.

Of course, it’s worth noting that Nimmo went through that process at a time when the Mets were a staunchly win-now team that ultimately won 101 games during his 2022 walk season. While the club has made clear that they plan for Alonso to be part of the Opening Day roster next season and that they hope to compete in 2024, the club’s focus appears to be on building for the future and it would hardly be a shock if Alonso were to find himself traded midseason if the Mets were to fall out of the race once again in 2024. Whether as a trade candidate or an extension candidate, Alonso is an attractive target as one of the game’s premiere power hitters. His 192 home runs lead the majors since he made his debut back in 2019, while only Aaron Judge, Olson, Kyle Schwarber, and Shohei Ohtani have crushed more dingers over the past three seasons than Alonso’s 123.

More from around the National League…

  • While the Dodgers made waves earlier today by agreeing to a record-setting $700MM deal with Ohtani, Jon Heyman of the New York Post indicates that landing the winter’s biggest fish won’t stop the club from pursuing other marquee free agents. Heyman indicates that even after factoring in Ohtani’s massive deal, the Dodgers still have both the desire and the necessary payroll capacity to sign NPB star Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto, 25, is moving stateside on the heels of three consecutive sub-2.00 ERA campaigns in Japan. A report earlier this week suggested that the Dodgers were among seven teams considered to be finalists for the right-hander’s services, and Heyman even suggests that LA could be ahead except the Mets and Yankees in their pursuit of Yamamoto. The young righty is an obvious fit for a Dodgers roster with an otherworldly lineup but little certainty in the rotation. Sophomore right-hander Bobby Miller is joined by Walker Buehler as the only starters locked into the club’s Opening Day rotation as things stand, though even Buehler will be pitching for the first time since early 2022 after undergoing the second Tommy John surgery of his career.
  • The Brewers are continuing to finalize their coaching staff under new manager Pat Murphy, who was promoted from his role as bench coach following the departure of longtime manager Craig Counsell earlier this offseason. To that end, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports that the club is moving assistant director of player development Charlie Greene from the front office to the big league coaching staff, where he’ll take over as Milwaukee’s bullpen coach. Greene will take over for Jim Henderson, who in turn is becoming the club’s assistant pitching coach.

Yankees Notes: Soto, Judge, Yamamoto, Bullpen

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On the heels of last night’s blockbuster, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman met with reporters this afternoon. He discussed a handful of topics on where the front office will proceed.

Cashman acknowledged the team has yet to have any conversations with Juan Soto’s camp regarding a long-term extension (relayed by Chris Kirschner of the Athletic). The three-time All-Star is one year from free agency, projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for a $33MM salary. It seems all but a lock that Soto will choose to test free agency. He declined a $440MM offer from the Nationals during the summer of 2022 and certainly wouldn’t sign for less than that now that he’s within a year of the open market.

The GM conceded “it’s a possible short term situation” with Soto. That didn’t deter the Yankees from making their all-in push to install him into the 2024 lineup alongside Aaron Judge. Between Soto, Alex Verdugo and Trent Grisham, they’ve added a trio of outfielders to better balance a lineup that struggled mightily when Judge was on the injured list. The 2022 AL MVP was out between June 4 and July 28 after injuring his right big toe in a collision with the outfield wall at Dodger Stadium.

Judge played regularly from the time of his reinstatement through season’s end. While there wasn’t much doubt about his health status, Cashman confirmed today that the toe problem is fully behind him (via Bryan Hoch of MLB.com).

The Soto return was pitching heavy. Michael King headlined a group that also included Jhony Brito, Randy Vásquez and Double-A prospect Drew Thorpe. After parting with so much of their rotation depth to push that trade over the finish line, Cashman said the team will look to backfill on the pitching staff (passed along by The Athletic’s Brendan Kuty).

There’s no bigger pitching target than Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The NPB ace is scheduled to meet with MLB teams next week. The Yankees are among a handful of teams that are serious suitors for the 25-year-old righty. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tweets that Yamamoto is the club’s priority at this point.

It seems the rotation is taking a bigger precedence than the bullpen. The Athletic reported last night that the Yankees were showing interest in free agent reliever Jordan Hicks. Feinsand downplays the club’s desire for a notable bullpen strike, however. While he confirms the Yankees like Hicks, he indicates a notable relief acquisition is more of a fallback possibility if Yamamoto signs elsewhere.

Red Sox Rumors: Second Base, Rotation, Turner, Outfield

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The Red Sox have a clear need at second base this winter, and as recently noted, newly installed chief baseball officer Craig Breslow indicated to reporters that he feels a trade is likelier than a free-agent signing. Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic adds some more context from Breslow’s media session, noting that he called the “ideal” acquisition a right-handed bat and plus defender.

Second base was a black hole in the Boston lineup last year. Ten different players saw time there — Christian Arroyo, Enmanuel Valdez, Luis Urias and Pablo Reyes primarily — and combined for a .240/.286/.376 slash on the whole. Urias has since been traded to the Mariners. Arroyo was outrighted and became a free agent. Reyes and Valdez remain on the roster, but the former is a career .256/.318/.367 hitter who’s best suited for a utility role, while the latter has all of 149 MLB plate appearances to his name.

Veteran Whit Merrifield headlines the free-agent crop of second basemen, though bounceback candidates like Amed Rosario and Adam Frazier hold some appeal to clubs in search of help at second base as well. The trade market offers far more intriguing possibilities. The Reds have an enviable surplus of infield talent, and 2021 Rookie of the Year Jonathan India has been an oft-rumored candidate to change hands (though Cincinnati president Nick Krall downplayed the possibility recently). The Twins have their own glut of infield talent and are open to offers on veteran Jorge Polanco as they seek to reduce payroll and bolster the pitching staff. McCaffrey suggests that San Diego’s Ha-Seong Kim would be of interest if available, although that would presumably only be the case if the Padres continue to scale back payroll — and the prospect cost to acquire Kim would hardly be insignificant.

As one would expect for a newly hired baseball operations leader who’s trying to turn around a last-place team, Breslow has plenty of balls in the air at the moment. In addition to the pursuits at second base, Boston has also been active in the rotation market. Reports this week indicated they’re among the top suitors for Seth Lugo, and McCaffrey writes that the Sox were interested in Luis Severino before he signed with the Mets. Jon Heyman of the New York Post tweets that the Sox had interest in a reunion with Eduardo Rodriguez but didn’t want to make a commitment with NPB newcomers Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shota Imanaga both still in play via free agency. The Sox have interest in both.

Beyond the pitching staff, the Sox remain engaged with Justin Turner about a potential reunion, Breslow confirmed yesterday (via Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe). Turner declined a player option with Boston after hitting .276/.345/.455 with 23 home runs in his first year with the team. That was a foregone conclusion, however, as the net $6.7MM value of that option (after factoring in the buyout he received) is well shy of what Turner can command in free agency, even at 39.

Breslow also suggested that he’d like to add a right-handed bat who can handle center field (via Abraham), though he stopped short of calling it a “need.” MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo tweets that Breslow also implied the Sox could stand pat in the outfield and head into the 2024 season with the current group of Wilyer Abreu, Jarren Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela, though that’s obviously an inexperienced group and a further addition clearly hasn’t been ruled out. Boston was linked to right-handed-hitting outfielders Michael A. Taylor and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. this week, though only the former is an option in center field (and a very good one, at that).

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