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Yankees Rumors: Latest Yoshinobu Yamamoto updates from Red Sox, Giants, Dodgers

Are we getting any closer to a deal? When's Christmas?

By Adam Weinrib |
World Baseball Classic Semifinals: Mexico v Japan
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While conflicting rumors have emerged pegging Yoshinobu Yamamoto's free agent decision for both Christmas and New Years, the bottom line is he must decide by Jan. 4, the date set by the current Japanese posting system.

That's a hard deadline, and consdering the physical examinations and contract machinations that have to be settled ahead of the buzzer, odds are he's going to be required to come to a conclusion a little earlier -- even if he doesn't want to.

What do we know by now? The Yankees and Mets are very much battling it out for Yamamoto's rights. Steve Cohen and the Mets and Brian Cashman and the Yankees both received second meetings in New York over the weekend. The right-hander reportedly requested time with the Yanks as a follow-up to his dinner with Cohen. Did he also request the Mets meeting and the cross-country flight? That's been reported by Andy Martino, and would seem to indicate both teams are being taken seriously as finalists.

Where will both teams land financially? An early-week reported push toward urgency brought the rumor mill to $300+ million, with Jim Bowden claiming that both the Red Sox and Giants had earnestly crossed that threshold. Of course, that was later reported to either be an initial float/informal offer, if not an outright lie. Formal bidding began on Monday, and while Cohen may blow away the field and the Yankees may have to approach, if not exceed, his whims, it seems the Dodgers are residing in a safer range.

Per reports that emerged Tuesday, LA's braintrust is weighing taking an uncharacteristic risk outside their comfort zone and offering $250+ million.

Dodgers' Yoshinobu Yamamoto offer below $300 million. Will Yankees top it?

If that's as high as they plan to go, odds are the Mets offer dwarfs theirs. $250 million, plus a posting fee, also represents a far more comfortable guidepost for the Yankees. Given Yamamoto's reported preference for prestige, it seems likely he would choose either the Dodgers or Yankees over the Mets, if the three teams' offers are comparable.

Now, the Dodgers (and probably the Yankees) must wait to see how high the "middle ground" they seek actually climbs. Because there's another team out there with deep pockets and a desperate need for a centerpiece that earned an on-site meeting.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto Rumors: Giants lurking

Yamamoto's east coast flight covered the Yankees and Mets. His stationary week in Los Angeles featured initial meetings with all interested teams (Red Sox, Phillies, possibly the Blue Jays), as well as a star-studded conference with the Dodgers. Hey, why not? Everybody was in town.

But, as Andrew Baggarly reported for the first time on Tuesday, the San Francisco Giants were the only other team to sneak Yamamoto into their facilities.

The Giants' initial meeting with Yamamoto occurred at Oracle Park, where he met Farhan Zaidi and a team of executives that appear to be just as obsessed with the righty's arsenal as Cashman & Co.

A higher offer isn't always everything -- just think of the Padres in every non-Xander Bogaerts market last offseason.

But the Giants have been desperate for star power for several years now, and Yamamoto has shown that he plans to take their aggression seriously. Though the mainstreamers in baseball media would seemingly love to do so and restrict this conversation to New York, New York, Tuesday's update proved the Giants can't be counted out.

And then there's the Red Sox.

Yankees Have Edge Over Red Sox in Yoshinobu Yamamoto Rumors?

Despite rumors to the contrary, reporting on Tuesday out of Boston was able to confirm that while he was on the east coast, Yamamoto did not take a visit to Fenway Park.

Could that change, if the more serious teams in the Yamamoto chase made late gaffes and chased him away (or if Boston's reported offer increased exponentially)? Of course. But Yamamoto would be highly unlikely to accept a Red Sox offer without traveling there, and as of this moment, he has not traveled there.

As Andy Martino said on SNY Tuesday night, the Yankees and Dodgers are in pole position, while the Mets are "hopeful." The gap between the three teams has been closed in recent weeks, but there certainly was a gap to begin with (and the chasm still remains).

If the Yankees can't close the deal here, rumor has it Will Warren is very much in the mix for their fifth starter role to begin the season, in a Jhony Brito-esque development. That's great news, regardless. Everyone who's ever watched a rotation disintegrate before knows that any team with a strong top five needs a confident six and seven, too. Warren, if the Yankees believe in the uptick of his stuff, will get opportunities, regardless of Yamamoto's decision.

It's undeniable, though, that using the rookie as a swingman behind a Japanese ace would be preferable to installing him on Day 1. Based on the weekend's schedule of visits and the current offers floating in the ether, the Yankees seem as well-positioned as any team to pull off a heist during the holidays.

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