December 22, 2023
Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the remaining grand prize of this winter's free agent class, will be joining Shohei Ohtani on the Dodgers, word broke late Thursday night.
YES Network analyst Jack Curry was first to report, and ESPN insider Jeff Passan followed up with the contract running for 12 years and $325 million – now the largest for a pitcher in MLB history.
The 25-year old right-hander had a lot of interest from a lot of clubs this offseason, and while they always seemed like a longshot, the Phillies were one of them.
The Phils were either linked or rumored to have interest in Yamamoto for a while, but when the sweepstakes really started picking up in the last week or so, their standing became clearer.
Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the Phillies intended to be "aggressive" in their pursuit of Yamamoto, Bryce Harper was said to have aided in the organization's pitch via a FaceTime call, and finally, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported earlier this week that an offer had been made.
Working against the Phillies when it came to actually landing Yamamoto, however, was already having a franchise record high payroll and clubs like the Yankees and Dodgers in the running with plenty of money to spend.
Again, they always seemed like a longshot, though the Phillies just being in the running at all may pay off down the line.
The organization has little prior history in signing free agents from Asian countries, but has made it a point since Dave Dombrowski took over as the president of baseball operations to expand their reach in eastern scouting, per The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal.
And the hope is that a serious run at Yamamoto paired with improved scouting in places like Japan, Taiwan, and Korea will open up a few more doors and make the Phillies a more attractive destination internationally.
The Phillies might also now turn their sights to a couple of other Japanese arms, believes Rosenthal, such as 30-year old left-hander Shota Imanga after he posted a 2.66 ERA and a 10.6 strikeouts per nine rate with Yokohama in 2023, or right-handed reliever Shintaro Fujinami, who helped push the Orioles to the AL East crown after being dealt to them from the Athletics.
For now, the Phillies' starting rotation sets up 1-4 as Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola Ranger Suárez, and Taijuan Walker, which has proven capable of getting the club to the postseason and should still be solid for 2024.
But the Dodgers, meanwhile, have a suddenly rebuilt powerhouse emerging.
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