Orix Buffaloes Yamamoto Yoshinobu is emerging as the biggest pitcher in the Major League Free Agent (FA) market.
US media The Athletic reported on the 20th (Korea Standard Time), "San Francisco wants to appoint a new coach by the time the free agent (FA) market opens in early November, but CEO Farhan Zaidi headed to Japan to look at free agent (FA) players as the final candidate selection process was delayed." Chairman Zaidi watched Orix ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitch in the first round of the Climax Series Final Stage. At a similar time, general manager Pete Putilla flew to Korea and found Lee Jung-hoo's last game. “This move shows how strongly San Francisco is trying to recruit two of the best international free agents (FA) players,” he said, adding that San Francisco is moving quickly to recruit Asian players.
The biggest free agent in the upcoming winter is definitely Shohei Ohtani (Angels). Ohtani, who played 135 games as a batter this season with a batting average of .304 (151 hits in 497 at-bats), 44 home runs, and 95 RBIs, with an OPS of 1.066, and as a pitcher, with 10 wins, 5 losses, and an average ERA of 3.14 in 23 games (132 innings), will play as a pitcher next year due to an elbow injury. Although it seems unlikely that he will be able to pitch, the prevailing view is that he will still receive the largest contract of all time.
On the other hand, except for Ohtani, there are not many free agent players who are special players. Blake Snell (San Diego), Cody Bellinger (Cubs), and Aaron Nola (Philadelphia) are being mentioned as players who could receive large contracts.
Since the player pool in the free agent market was not good, San Francisco turned its attention to Asian players early on. This winter, Japan's best ace Yamamoto and Korea's best hitter Lee Jeong-hoo (Kiwoom) will enter the major league through postings.
The Athletic said, “According to sources, President Zaidi watched Yamamoto’s pitching in the first game of the Climax Series Final Stage against Chiba Lotte held at the Kyocera Dome in Osaka, Japan on the 18th. Orix won 8-5, but Yamamoto did not show his best performance, allowing 10 hits, 2 walks, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts, and 5 runs in 7 innings. However, even these pitching records could not quell the enthusiasm for Yamamoto, who has world-class skills and command. “Yamamoto will be the second most popular player in the free agent market after Otani,” he explained.
Yamamoto is a special ace who has recorded a total of 70 wins, 29 losses, and an ERA of 1.82 in 172 games (897 innings) in Japanese professional baseball. From 2021 to 2023, he became the first pitcher in Japanese professional baseball to win four awards (multiple wins, earned run average, strikeouts, and winning percentage) for three consecutive years. He also achieved outstanding results this season with 23 games (164 innings), 16 wins, 6 losses, and an average ERA of 1.21.
President Zadii appeared on a podcast earlier this month and said, “It has become a place of pilgrimage for club officials who came to see Yamamoto. He is truly one of the best pitchers in the world. “It may sound like an exaggeration, but it is not,” he said, evaluating Yamamoto’s chances of success as high.
San Francisco also targeted Kodai Senga (Mets), who announced his intention to advance to the major leagues in Japan last offseason. However, the Mets, who were investing a huge amount of money in reinforcing their power at the time, began recruiting Senga and signed a 5-year contract worth $75 million (about 101.4 billion won). Senga finished his debut season successfully, going 12 wins, 7 losses, and a 2.98 ERA in 29 games (166⅓ innings).
The Athletic said, “The Mets, who traded Justin Verlander (Houston) and Max Scherzer (Texas), will not be attractive to Yamamoto. “There is a feeling in the baseball world that San Francisco will not allow other teams to offer Yamamoto a higher price than they do,” he said, predicting that San Francisco will actively pursue Yamamoto’s recruitment.
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