Let the Battle for Shohei Otani Begin

Like the title of the post says, let the battle for Shohei Otani begin. As we inch closer to September baseball and then the end of the 2017 season we also inch closer to Otani possibly leaving behind millions of dollars to come to the Major Leagues from the Japanese League a two years early. If Otani decides to come over, and many reports say that he will including a report from Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees are ready to bid, and bid big too.

According to FanRag Sports the Yankees and Red Sox are tied for holding the biggest allotments currently in their respective international spending pools. Both teams started with $4.75 million when the signing period opened on July 2 and both have obtained an extra $3.25 million according to the report giving each team $8 million to spend on international free agents.

If the Nippon Ham Fighters allow Otani to leave early the team will receive $20 million in a posting fee and all signs point to both the Yankees and Red Sox, among other teams around the league, being heavily involved in the talks and extremely interested in acquiring his services. This won’t be the first time the Yankees and Red Sox have battled it out for a free agent, or on the field as we will learn a little later today, and it won’t be the last but this one could have the most consequences for both clubs if they fail to sign him. Otani is that special and seemingly a once-in-a-lifetime type talent as both a hitter and as a pitcher.

The Texas Rangers ($2 million), the Atlanta Braves ($1.25 million), the Los Angeles Dodgers ($1 million), and the New York Mets ($1 million) have also acquired international money this season presumably to make a run at Otani so this could be a very interesting set of negotiations this winter if and when Otani announced his intention to come to the states. Stay tuned.