Left-hander Imanaga negotiation completion date 12th - Final candidates Boston, SF, Cubs, LAA
It is not an exaggeration to say that the 2023-24 off-season free agent market is the stage for Japanese pitchers.
Shohei Otani, a two-hitting pitcher who heated up the free agent market, right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto (LA Dodgers), and bullpen left-hander Yuki Matsui (San Diego Padres) have found a new home in MLB.
The pitcher who now remains a big catch is left-hander Shota Imanaka (30). Negotiations for Imanaga, who became a free agent through posting from Yokohama Baystars, expire on the 11th local time. Therefore, the home of the major league team will be decided early next week.
According to former Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals GM Jim Bowden's social media, there are four teams that are final candidates to recruit Imanaga. They are the Boston Red Sox, SF Giants, Chicago Cubs, and LA Angels. These are the teams that lost in the competition between Otani and Yamamoto.
Meanwhile, according to Boston.com, Imana, who has 8 years of experience in Japanese professional baseball, was expected to be worth $100 million over 8 years. The posting fee to be handed over to Yokohama is 16.875 million dollars, equivalent to 100 million dollars.
Imanaga, who is ranked lower than Otani and Yamamoto, recorded 64 wins, 50 losses, and an average ERA of 3.18 in his eight-year career. He pitched 1002.2 innings, struck out 1021, and walked 280. His strikeout:walk ratio is excellent at 3.64. Based on 9 innings, the number of strikeouts is 9.2.
Although he has a small stature of 178 cm, he is a fast pitcher with an average four-seam fastball speed of 147 km and a maximum speed of 155 km. This can also be seen in the fact that he has more strikeouts than innings pitched.
Appearing in 21 games in the 2023 season, he went 7-4, had an ERA of 2.80, and struck out 174 in 148 innings. Early last year, in the World Baseball Classic (WBC) game against the United States, he was tested by MLB scouts with 2 strikeouts and 1 run in 2 innings.
Among the four final candidates, the Chicago Cubs did not recruit a single player, although outfielder Cody Bellinger left the team as a free agent during the offseason. It's the only team.
The SF Giants acquired left-hander Robbie Ray from the Seattle Mariners on the 6th, but he will be able to pitch in the second half of this year due to rehabilitation from elbow ligament joint surgery.
Boston traded veteran Chris Sale to the Atlanta Braves, leaving it without a left-hander in its starting rotation. This is why Imana started recruiting.
The key question for the LA Angels, who lost Ohtani, is whether they can financially support the recruitment of the left-hander.
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