Yankees Chances to Sign Yamamoto Increase After Team Bows Out

The New York Yankees have an offer in place for Japanese free agent pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

The New York Yankees have long been believed to be one of the favorites to land Japanese free agent pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto. But it never hurts to thin out the herd.

On Thursday, the teams chasing Yamamoto thinned by one, as NBC Sports Bay Area was among the outlets reporting that the 25-year-old right-hander was no longer considering the San Francisco Giants’ offer.

So, now, the Yankees wait a little longer. They have already made their offer to Yamamoto.

With the Giants off the board, the Yankees are one of six teams believed to be pursuing Yamamoto, along with the New York Mets, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Boston Red Sox, the Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Yankees have met with Yamamoto twice since he came stateside last month. He’s been the hottest commodity on the free-agent market since his Nippon Professional Baseball team, the Orix Buffaloes, posted him.

Yamamoto has until Jan. 4 to reach a deal, but some believe he’ll get a deal done by Christmas.

If it’s the Yankees, it would be a heckuva gift for Yankees fans, who already saw the team pull off a trade for slugger Juan Soto earlier this month.

In 2023 he went 16-6 with a 1.21 ERA and struck out 169 hitters in 164 innings. He threw his second career no-hitter — with scouts from MLB teams in attendance — and won his third straight Pacific League MVP and Sawamura Awards, the latter of which is the Japanese Cy Young.

As for the money, experts believe Yamamoto will get a deal worth anywhere from $250-$300 million, with a span of eight to 12 years. That doesn’t include the posting fee due to Orix if Yamamoto signs a contract. That posting fee could be $50 million, depending upon the contract value.