Steve Cohen optimistic about Mets' rebound despite missing out on Yoshinobu Yamamoto: "One player is never going to make or break your team"
Yoshinobu Yamamoto decided to sign with the LA Dodgers and ditched the searing offer he might have received from the Steve Cohen-led New York Mets. Cohen had extensively pursued the Japanese ace and even went to scout the player during a NPB game in Japan.
Since then, he has even invited Yamamoto to his residence for a catered affair, but it looks like all attempts surrounding Yoshinobu to Queens rumors went in vain as he decided to join his fellow Japanese teammate Shohei Ohtani on the West Coast with the LA Dodgers.
Steve Cohen refused to provide details on the talks, but a person close to the industry claimed that the Mets' offer was one of the first that Yamamoto's team saw and that the team was never given the chance to raise the offer. The insider also said that considering the posting fee, which increased the total expenditure to almost $375 million, the Mets might not have gone much higher.
"We’re going to be thoughtful and not impulsive and thinking about sustainability over the intermediate long-term, but not focused on winning the headlines over the next week" - Steve Cohen via New York Post
"Last I looked, there’s never one player that is going to make or break your team, We’ll build it. It will happen. Slowly and surely you will see changes and improvements. We have got the right management in place with a shared vision" - Steve Cohen on Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Plan B for the Mets will probably involve approaching the rotation with caution as opposed to making a snap decision and turning to huge names like Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery, or even going with a steal like the Cuban ace Yariel Rodriguez.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto snubs Steve Cohen's offer to join the LA Dodgers
The Dodgers have struck out with a free agent for the second time in as many games this month. Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Los Angeles have agreed to a 12-year, $375 million deal.
The agreement does not involve any deferred money and comes with a $50 million signing bonus for the Wasserman client. It is still pending a physical. The total investment exceeds $375 million, including a posting fee to the Orix Buffaloes of Nippon Professional Baseball that is close to $51 million.
"Yoshinobu Yamamoto becomes the highest paid pitcher in MLB history without ever having thrown a pitch in the league" - TalkinBaseball_
This season, Yamamoto went 16-6 with a 1.21 ERA in 164 innings pitched, 169 strikeouts, and 28 walks. In his seven seasons with the Orix Buffaloes, he is 70-29 with a 1.82 ERA. On November 5, Yamamoto won Game 6 over Hanshin with a record-tying 14 strikeouts in a 138-pitch complete game. And Orix lost the seventh game.