Report: SF Giants are out on Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Dec 21, 2023, 4:28 PM | Updated: 4:39 pm
(Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)
(Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)
Another star free agent has chosen to play for another team rather than sign with the San Francisco Giants.
NBC Sports’ Alex Pavlovic broke the news on Thursday night that Japanese star pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto has informed the Giants that they are out of the bidding, meaning the free agent will sign with another team.
With San Francisco out of the picture, three teams remain in the race for the 25-year-old right-hander:
The New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Mets, with the Yankees and Dodgers widely viewed as the favorites to land the star arm.
The Giants have been told they’re out of the bidding for Yoshinobu Yamamoto, per source familiar with discussions. They pushed hard but expectation is that he will end up in LA or NY.
— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) December 22, 2023
Yamamoto is expected to receive a contract worth over $200 million and possibly near or past the $300 million mark in a deal that could rival Yankees ace Gerrit Cole’s $324 million record contract for a pitcher.
It was never about money for the Giants, as it was widely reported that president Farhan Zaidi was planning on being aggressive in his pursuit of Yamamoto.
With Yamamoto heading to New York or Los Angeles, San Francisco can set its sights on reigning Cy Young winner Blake Snell, World Series standout Jordan Montgomery, and free agent third baseman Matt Chapman once the market develops after the right-hander inks his deal.
Another star has chosen to play elsewhere, and that’s going to sting for Giants fans–but there are still plenty of big names on the market there for the taking.
More on Japanese star pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto
The 25-year-old Yamamoto spent the past six-plus seasons with the Orix Buffaloes, compiling a 70-29 record with one save and a 1.82 ERA in 172 games. He has struck out 922 batters over 897 innings.
In 23 games in 2023, he finished with a 16-6 record and 1.21 ERA with 169 strikeouts in 164 innings. Those numbers helped him to his third straight Triple Crown in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball as he led the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts.
Yamamoto also has won the Eiji Sawamura Award, which equals the Cy Young Award, three times.
The 5-foot-10 Yamamoto won a gold medal with Japan in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and another in the World Baseball Classic earlier this year.
SF Giants Schedule
Spring Training
- February 13-15th – Pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training workouts
- February TBD – Full squad workouts
- Saturday, February 24th – Spring Training opener vs. Chicago Cubs
Regular Season
- Thursday, March 28th-Sunday, March 31st – @ San Diego Padres
- Monday, April 1st-Wednesday, April 3rd – @ Los Angeles Dodgers
- Friday, April 5th-Sunday, April 7th – vs. San Diego Padres
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