Field Level Media
21 Nov 2023, 03:55 GMT+10
(Photo credit: Yukihito Taguchi-USA TODAY Sports)
Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto can begin negotiating with Major League Baseball teams on Tuesday after officially posting as a free agent.
The right-hander is projected to sign a long-term deal worth more than $200 million, and his current team in Japan will receive a percentage of the contract value on top of that, likely more than $30 million.
Yamamoto, reportedly high on the offseason shopping list of multiple big-market teams, expects to draw interest from the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros, Boston Red Sox and both New York teams.
Per MLB rules, the 45-day window that opens Tuesday would close at 5 p.m. ET on Jan. 4.
The 25-year-old spent the past six-plus seasons with the Orix Buffaloes, compiling a 70-29 record with one save and a 1.82 ERA in 172 games. He has struck out 922 batters over 897 innings.
In 23 games in 2023, he finished with a 16-6 record and 1.21 ERA with 169 strikeouts in 164 innings. Those numbers helped him to his third straight Triple Crown in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball as he led the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts.
Only three pitchers in Major League Baseball have won the Triple Crown three times -- Sandy Koufax, Walter Johnson and Grover Cleveland Alexander.
Yamamoto also has won the Eiji Sawamura Award, which equals the Cy Young Award, three times.
The 5-foot-10 Yamamoto won a gold medal with Japan in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and another in the World Baseball Classic earlier this year.
--Field Level Media
Get a daily dose of Cleveland Star news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Cleveland Star.
More InformationLONDON - Health experts and tobacco campaigners have strongly criticized New Zealand's decision to repeal laws that aimed to ban ...
NEW YORK, New York - The Dow Jones index was the standout on U.S. financial markets on Thursday with a ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: Despite the ongoing economic uncertainty, major discounts during the Thanksgiving weekend enticed U.S. shoppers, who spent some US$38 ...
BANGKOK, Thailand: This week, Thailand's Deputy Finance Minister Krisada Chinavicharana said after a weaker-than-expected third quarter, the country will downgrade ...
BEIJING, China: The country's commerce ministry said that during a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in Ho ...
NEW YORK, New York - Retreating bond yields and a higher-then-expected GDP reading for the third quarter boosted U.S. stocks ...
COLUMBUS, Ohio: To stop the spread of bird flu, more than 1.3 million chickens will be killed on Ohio's Union ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: On November 24, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recalled three more brands of whole and pre-cut ...
(Photo credit: Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports) Trae Young poured in a season-high 45 points and dished out 14 assists and ...
(Photo credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports) Shaedon Sharpe recorded his first double-double with 29 points and 10 rebounds as the ...
(Photo credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports) The New York Mets increased the position versatility of their roster with the signing ...
(Photo credit: Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports) It'll be a battle of coaching brothers when the Jacksonville Jaguars host a rare ...