REPORT SUGGESTS YANKS MISSED OUT ON TATSUYA IMAI

Looks like Tatsuya Imai may have a deal, and it ain't with the Yankees. It should surprise no one.

Oh, Happy New Year by the way. I am going to be totally positive this year. A positivity that can only be created with the vision of sunshine and rainbows. But I live in the Northeast near the Bronx, and it's cold, there's snow and oh yea, the Yankees aren't improving their team. So, there's that.

In my first post of 2026, I can report that the Yanks do not have a deal with Imai. The Astros reportedly do.  Houston finalized a deal with Imai on Thursday, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan: three years, $54 million guaranteed, with escalators that can push it to $63 million and opt-outs sprinkled in for good measure. Clean. Aggressive. Purposeful. Three words the Yankees keep pretending apply to them.

Imai entered the posting system as one of the more intriguing arms available this winter, largely because he resembled recent postseason standouts Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Trey Yesavage. And because no Boras client is allowed to exist without myth-making, Scott Boras went full carnival barker and compared Imai to Yamamoto, the World Series MVP. Scott—please—everyone knows the rule: comparisons are earned after outs, not press releases. Stop. You are terrible for the game of baseball.

What made this signing sting even more was how completely it came out of left field. Newsweek nailed the confusion perfectly, writing:

“Tatsuya Imai, the 27-year-old Japanese right-hander, had until Friday to sign with a major league team before his posting window closed. But in the weeks and days leading up to that deadline, no one seemed to have much information on which teams Imai was favoring.

Almost nobody linked Imai to the Houston Astros throughout his free agency process. Once reports surfaced that he’d signed with Houston, however, the fit immediately made sense.”

That’s Astros baseball in a nutshell: silence, competence, and then—boom—an improved roster. No leaks. No posturing. Just execution.

Meanwhile, the Yankees were once again “linked,” “connected,” and “very interested,” which has become the modern Bronx equivalent of thoughts and prayers. Multiple reports suggested the Yankees were among the favorites to land Imai, hoping to bolster a rotation that desperately needs upside. And yet, when it came time to actually do something, the Yankees did what they’ve mastered this offseason—nothing.

To be fair, YES Network’s Jack Curry had already hinted the interest wasn’t nearly as real as fans believed. As usual, Curry was right. He’s been right so often that at this point Yankees fans should just skip the rumors and wait for Jack's report. He cuts through it.

However you want to spin it, the ending is unavoidable: the Astros made a real move. The Yankees did not. Houston identified a need and attacked it. The Yankees hovered nearby, admired the idea, and went back to shopping the bargain aisle.

And that’s the most deflating part. This offseason isn’t about losing players—it’s about not fighting for them. While rivals quietly get better, the Yankees keep selling patience, restraint, and long-term flexibility. Great. Wonderful. Very inspiring.

Just don’t ask how any of that helps win now.