Mets Remain Among Favorites To Sign Japanese Superstar According To Oddsmakers

New York could land a frontline starter soon

The New York Mets' main objective for this year's offseason has been to retool the pitching staff after a disastrous 2023 season.

The club's rotation was significantly deflated after losing two of their top starters at last year's trade deadline and the Mets have yet to fill those holes.

The inactivity of the Mets this offseason can be attributed to the franchise's hot pursuit of the most coveted arm on the market -- who they are projected to be in serious contention for.

The Mets are listed among the favorites to sign right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto according to the oddsmakers at BetOnline. The Mets enter with +300 odds (25%) to land the Japanese sensation, who will come at a high price.

The Mets only trail the New York Yankees at +125 (44.44%) in the pursuit of the international ace.

Yamamoto posted a 16-6 record with a 1.21 ERA, 169-to-28 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 0.88 WHIP in 164 innings across 23 starts for Orix Buffaloes in 2023.

The 25-year-old pitcher is arguably the most talented pitcher to ever be recruited out of Japan and has been the talk of the offseason with all of the big-market teams looking to sign him.

Mets owner Steven Cohen has held face-to-face meetings with Yamamoto on two separate occasions but has yet to land a deal. 

It's rumored that the highly-coveted pitcher will land a contract in the $300 million range -- though that could include the posting fee -- and Cohen surely has the money to make that commitment.

Day-to-day reports swing one way or another and it's hard to tell where the Japanese superstar will land, but it's a positive sign to see the Mets so highly favored to sign Yamamoto this late in the game.

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