Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani will be the top MLB free agent this winter, but his recent UCL tear means he will not be the top starting pitcher on the market. Instead, the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees are reportedly scouting Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Yamamoto, age 25, is the best baseball player in Japan right now. The 5-foot-10 righty has dominated in Nippon Professional Baseball with the Orix Buffaloes, becoming one of the best pitchers in the world.
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto stats (2023): 1.34 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 9.1 K/9, 135-20 K-BB in 134 innings
Related: New York Mets interested in Yoshinobu Yamamoto
After turning 25 on Aug. 17, Yamamoto is expected to be posted for bidding by Orix this winter. It will lead to a frantic bidding war between teams, seeking to make Yamamoto one of the highest-paid MLB players and a front-line starter in an MLB rotation next season.
According to Jon Heyman of the NY Post, the Cubs, Yankees and New York Mets were among the MLB teams with a strong presence for Yamamoto’s most recent start in Japan. All three clubs are expected to pursue him when he’s posted by the Buffaloes this winter.
Chicago and New York were reportedly joined by scouts and front-office executives from the Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals. More than a dozen teams are expected to at least have some interest in the Japanese right-handed pitcher when he’s posted.
Yamamoto has won the Pacific League MVP in each of the last two seasons and has been the best player in the NPB since he debuted. He is a five-time NPB All-Star) and has led the league in ERA three times, including in the past two seasons.
In his most recent start, Yamamoto threw seven shutout innings with scouts praising his poise, athleticism and feel for pitching. The 25-year-old has a four-seam fastball that tops out to 97 mph and he mixes it in with a cutter, curveball and splitter.