New York Mets May Have Best Tool To Sign Yamamoto

Yoshinobu Yamamoto is set to be posted and the New York Mets are one of many teams set to try and sign the Japanese star.

The time is nearing for the New York Mets to deploy what may be their biggest weapon in their pursuit of star Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

The New York Post reported on Saturday that the Orix Buffaloes could post Yamamoto as early as Monday, which would open a 45-day window for every MLB team that is interested to start their pursuit.

The Mets, like many other MLB teams, have scouted Yamamoto during his 2023 season in Japan.

But the Mets have something no one else has — Kodai Senga.

Senga played in the same league at Yamamoto with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. He wasn’t posted, though. He was able to exercise his international free agent rights and signed a five-year, $75 million deal with the Mets last offseason.

Senga had an exceptional rookie year, as he went 12-7 with a 2.98 ERA. He finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting and seventh in NL Cy Young voting, along with earning his first All-Star Game appearance.

He’s also made it clear as far back as August that he’s willing to help the Mets make the pitch to lure Yamamoto to Queens.

“I have known him since he was 20 years old,” Senga said to the New York Post through an interpreter. “He’s been at the top level since he was very young, and I know he has a ton of talent. He is an amazing player.”

The belief among executives is that Yamamoto could net a deal worth more than $200 million, and that doesn’t include the posting fee the MLB team that signs Yamamoto will pay the Buffaloes.

At 25 years old, Yamamoto has a 70-29 record. He has a mid-90s fastball, but he is best known for an array of breaking pitches that can befuddle hitters. This season he had just a 1.21 ERA. He also went 16-6 and struck out 169 hitters in 164 innings.

Yamamoto just wrapped up play in the Japan Series, their country’s equivalent of the World Series. His final game saw him strike out 14 hitters in Game 6, which set a series record.

Yamamoto has thrown two no-hitters in his career. He’s also won gold medals for Japan in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.