Yankees Rumors: NYY among 'favorites' for Japanese ace (and have ace in the hole)

It's been quite a while since the New York Yankees, who once dominated the Japanese free agency market, have made an overseas splash. Masahiro Tanaka was the splurge at the end of the Yankees' 2013-14 class, which also included Brian McCann, Carlos Beltrán, and Jacoby Ellsbury. Since then? They've heavily pursued Yoshinobu Yamamoto, been spurned by Shohei Ohtani before his free agency even really started, and stayed out of the bidding entirely for the rest of the country's stars.

While it's become a bit of an overcooked punchline lately to ascribe each and every Japanese star to the Dodgers, regardless of the team's current need, the posting of Tatsuya Imai feels a little bit different. The Dodgers just surged to a title behind a ridiculous rotation of Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and Shohei Ohtani. Roki Sasaki was a closer at the end of this campaign; he won't be moving forward. Los Angeles has funds, as always, but they've also got concurrent needs that deserve more attention than "another starter to add to our surplus". They built a bullpen last year and it failed; they'll need to do it again. They need to replace Michael Conforto, possibly by adding Kyle Tucker? The Dodgers have seemingly endless cash, but they don't use those dollars foolishly.

Hence, with Imai's posting around the corner, there's reason to believe that the Dodgers are not among the favorites — and that a delightful public connection between the Yankees and the right-hander, per Francys Romero, is actually legitimate.

The "catch," for the rest of the league? Imai will be represented by Scott Boras as he hits the market. The Dodgers typically avoid him. So do the Cubs, who could absolutely use someone to follow in Shota Imanaga's wake. The Yankees? They get along well with Boras, actually. They allow him to toss their name out onto the market when he needs to drum up competition. They register their interest with his clients early (Carlos Rodón), and he does them the courtesy of circling back as the offers build.

Yankees Rumors: New York among favorites to land Japanese right-hander Tatsuya Imai

Cody Bellinger, the Yankees' presumed top target this offseason, is a Boras client. This may be early lip service, or it may indicate a splurge, but given the way things are lining up here, it's plausible that the Yankees and Boras will be working in tandem on Imai.

Chasing the "next Yamamoto" is fruitless, but Imai checks plenty of boxes, regardless of structural similarity (95 MPH heater that touches 99, 5'11" frame to Yamamoto's 5'10" body). His 1.92 ERA in 163 2/3 frames last year is indicative of someone ready to make the leap in talent level of their league, if not innings pitched (170 should be fine for a Yankees team that needs connective rotation tissue, not a newly-minted hoss).

And, when push comes to shove, having Boras in their corner — despised by many, comfortable with the Yankees' front office — might allow them to make the splash they've long needed in a market they can no longer afford to ignore.