The San Francisco Giants’ quest for a new manager is taking a backseat as Farhan Zaidi, the president of baseball operations, shifts his focus to scout Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, as reported by Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic.
Yamamoto has been on fire in the 2023 season, boasting a 17-6 record and a remarkable 1.16 ERA in 24 games. His impressive performance includes a whopping 176 strikeouts in 171.0 innings pitched.
Several MLB teams, such as the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Mets, are gearing up to bid for Yamamoto’s talents during the upcoming offseason, according to Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY.
Buy or sell: Yankees being all-in on Yamamoto and more rumors from MLB GM Meetings 💭 @zachrymer https://t.co/zaeIy6tcPV pic.twitter.com/DTmpND3T5h
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) November 9, 2023
The Yankees have Gerrit Cole as their ace, with a stellar 2.63 ERA and 222 strikeouts in 2023. However, the rest of their pitching rotation fell short, with no other pitcher meeting the mark of an ERA below 4 in at least 10 starts.
Meanwhile, the Giants are eager for more from their pitching staff to make a playoff return after their record-setting 107 wins in the 2021 season. Zaidi has long admired Yamamoto and is openly expressing his interest in the pitcher. “It’s been a pilgrimage over there from front office people to see him,” he mentioned, emphasizing Yamamoto’s standing as one of the world’s top pitchers, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports.
While the Giants tried to acquire Japanese pitcher Kodai Senga last offseason, they couldn’t make a counteroffer in time, and Senga ultimately signed with the New York Mets, according to Baggarly. Securing Yamamoto would be a significant win for the Giants, given that the 25-year-old is widely regarded as one of the best pitchers outside of Major League Baseball.
