The New York Yankees are gearing up for a playoff run, but the front office already has their sights set on making a marquee international signing this winter.
According to Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, the Yankees have the most international pool money (along with the Boston Red Sox) in preparations for them to make a run after Japanese star Shohei Otani.
Otani, one of the best and most exciting players on the planet, is limited by the CBA to teams’ international allotments, and according to figures obtained by FanRag Sports, the Red Sox and Yankees are tied for holding the biggest allotments – at least at the moment (it may depend on who else they may be planning to sign internationally).
The extra dollars may or may not give them an edge in any Otani derby, but it’s interesting to note that both big-market teams have obtained an extra $3.25 million in extra international pool money, and both had $4.75 million to start (teams have between $4.5 million and $5.5 million to begin now), giving them each exactly $8 million to spend this winter on international players.
However, there's no guarantee that Otani will choose to come over to the MLB this offseason. If he wants to, he can wait two years before making the move on a true free agency deal - when he'd be in for a much bigger pay day.
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Scouts believe that the 22-year-old will be a star as either an everyday position player or as a pitcher. He is 39-14 with a 2.55 ERA in his career as a pitcher, but also has a .345/.409/.556 batting line with five home runs and 21 RBIs in 44 games this season despite being limited with foot injuries.
The Los Angeles Dodgers and Texas Rangers are also known to have a lot of interest in Otani and will both pursue him this summer.
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