Even if the Dodgers’ signing of Shohei Ohtani over the weekend hasn’t yet settled in, there are still a number of excellent free agents available.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, a right-hander from Japan, is widely regarded as the finest pitcher in the NPB, and several teams are reportedly interested in signing him. Since the Cubs haven’t been brought up, I’m going to focus on Shota Imanaga, the “other” NPB pitcher who is considered to be one of the better free agents this offseason (Imanaga is placed No. 10 in MLB Trade Rumours’ rankings, while Yamamoto is ranked No. 3).
In my article from last month, I discussed Imanaga and came to the conclusion that MLBTR’s estimate of a five-year, $85 million contract was probably not too far off. That’s an AAV of $17 million; Morosi charges $20 million annually. The Cubs should be able to afford either one.
Let’s be precise. Imanaga isn’t far behind Yamamoto, who has been the NPB’s top pitcher for a number of years and has won the Cy Young Award three times in a row. For the Yokohama Bay Stars in 2023, he made 22 starts and recorded a 2.80 ERA and 1.054 WHIP. In 148 innings, he struck out 174 batters while walking just 24. Over the course of his eight-year NPB career, Imanaga has walked 2.5 batters per nine innings, which has been a defining feature of his career.
Imanaga would play through the 30-34 age range with a five-year contract because he turned 30 in September.
$100 million over five years (plus the posting cost, which is not deducted from the luxury tax).
