Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the 25-year-old free-agent star pitcher from Japan, dined on Saturday night at the Connecticut home of New York Mets owner Steve Cohen, league sources confirmed.
It’s believed that the dinner went well, with the participants enjoying the hospitality and free-flowing conversation leading to a generally good connection. During the meeting, the Mets were again able to share with Yamamoto why they believe they’d be the right spot for him. The Cohens hosted Yamamoto seemingly in hopes of offering a nice, personal touch, one that may help distinguish the Mets from the other clubs locked in competition for the righthander’s services.
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The in-person meeting, first reported by the New York Post, was the latest example of Cohen and the Mets doing whatever it takes to try and land Yamamoto, the highest-ranked (No. 3) unsigned free agent on The Athletic’s top 40 free agent big board. Earlier this month, Cohen and president of baseball operations David Stearns flew to Japan to meet with Yamamoto.
Stearns, manager Carlos Mendoza, pitching coach Jeremy Hefner and Cohen’s wife, Alex, also attended the dinner. Meanwhile, Yamamoto brought his own interpreter. Overall, the meeting was a step forward for the Mets, who have put Yamamoto at the top of their list of offseason targets.
During the dinner, Yamamoto seemed inquisitive and asked several questions of Mets officials. It’s unclear exactly what team officials pitched to the player though a few selling points seem logical — namely Kodai Senga’s successful transition from Japan last season and ownership’s track record of spending significantly to improve the club.
Notably, the actual bidding process is supposed to intensify this week, so it was key for the Mets’ brass to get additional time with him. The window to sign Yamamoto closes at 5 p.m. on Jan. 4, but many around the league believe he will pick a team before the end of the month. A handful of other teams remain heavily in the mix for Yamamoto, with the list including the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees, among other big-market teams.
Yamamoto spent much of the last week in Los Angeles meeting with teams and their respective personnel. He had not yet met with Mendoza and Hefner, so it was important for him to get the opportunity to ask the manager and pitching coach questions and learn more about the Mets.
But time will tell. A lot will come down to the bidding process. At the start of the offseason, The Athletic’s Tim Britton projected that a team would need to offer a seven-year, $203 million deal to land Yamamoto. However, the competition for the righthander has been fierce.
The Mets are willing to pay a substantial amount for him as they look to compete in 2024 while also valuing the future. Yamamoto, one of the best pitchers in Japan’s baseball history, stands out because he would help the Mets in a significant way now and later.
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(Photo of Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitching in 2021: Koji Watanabe / Getty Images)