San Francisco Giants may choose to pursue the next best NPB option even if they lost out on Yoshinobu Yamamoto, a top pitcher in the NPB. The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier reports that star NPB pitcher Shōta Imanaga will begin meeting with organizations the following week.
The San Francisco Giants aim to start meeting with teams the following week.
Speier confirms that the Giants are among the interested teams, citing their connection to Imanaga from earlier this month. The Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, and New York Mets will all be vying for the left-handed pitcher.
However, Speier points out that the Red Sox have been making trades closer to the middle of the market, so going after Imanaga goes against what they have indicated. That might alter.
It should come as no surprise that some of the teams who are interested in Imanaga are also among those who attracted Yamamoto prior to his 12-year, $325 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Mets’ interest in Yamamoto felt unique, as I indicated earlier in regards to front-line starters. Like the Red Sox, they might be a player for Imanaga, but given how they’ve played this winter, it seems like it would go against the grain.
The Chicago Cubs, who have not signed a player to a major league deal this winter, could be considered in the same boat. Thus, the top teams that could sign the 30-year-old pitcher are the Giants, Yankees, and an unidentified team. Imanaga would tick the box for both sides, who are eager to sign one of the best starting players still available.
The southpaw pitcher, who made 24 starts for the Yokohama Bay Stars of the NPB in 2023, finished with a 2.66 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 10.6 K/9, and a 7.83 SO/W ratio, is coming off of another fantastic season. Imanaga has finished eight seasons with Yokohama with a 2.96 ERA, 94 K/9, and a 3.93 SO/W ratio.
Given his knowledge of all four strike zone quadrants, he probably fits the Giants’ philosophy better than other choices. Part of the reason he was given the moniker “The Throwing Philosopher” was his superior command.
MLB Trade Rumors predicted that Imanaga would land a five-year, $85 million pact, but it could be even higher than that if enough of the big-market clubs are involved. He was posted by the Bay Stars at the end of November and his posting window runs through January 11, 2024. Whichever team signs him will owe the Bay Stars a posting fee.