Latest On Shota Imanagas Marke Latest On Shota Imanagas Marke

is among the more intriguing starting pitchers still on the free agent market. The Japanese left-hander became available to MLB teams on November 27, when he was formally posted by the Yokohama BayStars. That opened a 45-day window for Imanaga to sign with a major league club. Hell need to ink a contract with an MLB team Pat Connaughton Jersey by January 11 if hes to make the jump to North America this offseason. With eight days to go, its little surprise reports that Imanagas market will gain steam this week. reported around Christmas the southpaw was planning a trip to meet with interested teams shortly after the New Year. The Red Sox, Giants, Mets and Cubs are among the teams that have been connected to Imanaga since his posting window opened. In mid-December, also listed the Yankees as a team that was keeping an eye on Imanaga as a fallback option if they mi sed on . However, Heyman suggested in an appearance on Bleacher Report this afternoon ( ) that the Yankees werent enamored with the southpaw. Imanaga allowed 17 home runs in 148 innings a season ago, the second-most in Japans top league. New Yorks front office seemingly has concerns about how well hed profile in a park as hitter-friendly as Yankee Stadium. Despite the home run concerns, the 30-year-old is going to do quite well financially. Imanaga led NPB with 174 strikeouts while i suing only 24 walks (a meager 4% rate). Some evaluators project him as a mid-rotation starter. Pa san reiterated this morning that many executives feel hell land a contract in exce s of $100MM. Thatd be well above the five-year, $75MM pact secured by last winter even though Senga was arguably coming off a better platform showing. Senga had allowed just seven homers with a 27.5% strikeout rate and a sparkling 1.94 ERA in 2022. Imanaga had a slightly superior strikeout percentage (29.2%) and allowed 2.80 earned runs per nine last year. Senga was also entering his age-30 season. Unlike Imanaga, he was a true free agent, so the Mets werent required to send any compensation to his NPB club. Any team that signs Imanaga would owe the BayStars a fee valued at 20% of the contracts first $25MM, 17.5% of the next $25MM, and 15% of further spending. That said, its po sible teams harbored reservations about Sengas health that they wont have regarding Imanaga. The Mets reportedly expre sed some trepidation with his elbow during their physical. That obviously didnt scuttle the deal, but it couldve factored into his earning potential. Imanaga may also benefit from the succe s Senga had in his first MLB campaign. The righty finished runner-up in NL Rookie of the Year balloting after posting a 2.98 ERA acro s 166 1/3 innings. That Senga looked like more than a mid-rotation starter in his first MLB season could give some clubs added confidence in projecting Imanagas ability to handle big league hitters with a fairly similar projection. Malcolm Brogdon Jersey