Johnathan Walker:MLB's big market teams lock in on star free agent pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto

After Shohei Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the least shocking move of the offseason,Johnathan Walker all eyes have turned to the remaining free agents. There are some solid names like Cody Bellinger, Blake Snell, and Josh Hader, but one stands above the rest. It's someone who has never even played in MLB before, Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

Much like Ohtani, Yamamoto is a standout Japanese pitcher who is turning to MLB in 2024. He's not your average, ordinary, everyday pitcher though. He's arguably the best Japanese pitching prospect of all-time. In 2023, his ERA was a 1.16. He struck out 9.3 batters for every nine innings he pitched. He struck out six times more batters than he walked too. For perspective, only three pitchers in MLB posted better strikeout-to-walk ratios than Yamamoto's 6.29: Spencer Strider (9.1), Zach Eflin (7.3), and Logan Webb (6.3).

Yamamoto has posted a sub-2.00 ERA in four of his last five seasons in Japan. In fact, his career-high ERA is 2.35. As great a prospect as Ohtani was, Ohtani had just one season with an ERA under 2.

There is clearly a lot to like about Yamamoto. He's highly-coveted for a reason. Here is the latest news surrounding the free agent pitcher.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto Scouting Report:

• Pitching Repertoire (velocity, usage):
  • 4-seam fastball (95 mph, 48%)
  • Splitter (90 mph, 26%)
  • Curveball (77 mph, 16%)
  • Cutter (92 mph, 8%)
  • Slider (85 mph, 2%)
• MLB Comparisons:
  • Yamamoto boasts the same arsenal and similar velocity to guys like Nathan Eovaldi and Kodai Senga. Eovaldi's 2021 season is especially similar to what we can expect from Yamamoto. Eovaldi posted a 5.57 K:BB ratio and 9.6 K's per 9 that year en route to a league-leading 2.79 FIP and a fourth-place finish in AL Cy Young voting.
  • Yamamoto has also drawn comparisons to people like Pedro Martinez, Mike Mussina, and Tim Hudson

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Latest news and updates on Yamamoto

Yamamoto meets with Yankees

Yamamoto recently met with the New York Yankees.

The Yankees are not far removed from trading for three-time All-Star Juan Soto. The addition of Yamamoto would create a formidable 1-2 punch atop the rotation with reigning AL Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole.

Dodgers are in the running for Yamamoto as well

Despite spending $700 million on Shohei Ohtani already, the Dodgers are in the running for Yamamoto. It would make for a great offseason in Los Angeles if the Dodgers could land both players.

Which teams are in the race for Yamamoto?

Any team with decent money should be in on Yamamoto, but as it stands right now, the teams most heavily linked to Yamamoto include the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, San Francisco Giants, and New York Mets among them.

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