BYB did a piece about the newest pitching sensation out of Japan in Shohei Otani the other day and how he will no doubt be a huge investment for any team in the MLB if he were to post and bail on the Japanese league. Read THE NEXT BABE RUTH for more of that.
The Yankees have had their share of luck and disappointment with Japanese pitchers before, going back to Hideki Irabu to guys like Kei Igawa and Masahiro Tanaka. We finally got it right with Tanaka, and with the Yankees in need of solid pitching, many wonder if the Yankees would ever go after Otani.
There's a great article from Tanya Bondurant from Pinstripe Alley today and it says just that...
"The Yankees find themselves finally on a path to getting younger, but their rotation leaves a lot to be desired...With money coming off the books this offseason, it would
be a great time for the Yankees to reload their rotation. The problem
with that is that there are no good starting pitchers available on the
free agent market. It’s really bad out there. Brian Cashman could use
some of the improved farm to make a trade, but the kind of pitcher the
Yankees need to get would come at a very high cost. Parting with a top
prospect or likely multiple top prospects would sting.
The saving grace for a team in search of pitching may
come in the form of Shohei Otani from Japan. The 22-year-old
right-hander is the best pitcher to come out of Japan since Tanaka or Yu Darvish. The catch is that his team has not yet decided to post him
yet. It’s not a sure thing that they will. However, if Otani is made
available, the Yankees really need to do whatever it takes to get him."
Yes, ultimately, this is just a waiting game now, but with money being freed up, and if the timing is right and Otani does post, Tanya and I agree... it's something the Yankees should definitely pursue.
What do you think?
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