Yoshinobu Yamamoto is officially a Major Leaguer. But guess with who?

 In my daily dose of MLB, I learned that Yoshibobu Yamamoto signed a 12-year $325,000,000 contract. Guess with who.

You guessed it-the Dodgers! Boo.

After landing Glasnow ad Ohtani on huge deals, they decided to land the righty in an enormous deal. They've now spent over a billion dollars this offseason, and I bet the other teams are calling this unfair.

Yamamoto has won three straight Japanese Cy Young Awards, and in his 7 years in Japanese baseball, he has compiled an impressive 75-30, 1.72 campaign, so yeah, this guy's dominant. 

However, when players from NIPPON come to the Majors, they tend to not do as well. It's like AAA overseas and the Bigs here. Nonetheless, Japan just won the WBC (World Baseball Classic), and this is the best pitcher they've got. And Kodai Senga just came over from Japan this past season and had an awesome campaign (12-7, 2.98, 202 Ks). So, seeing as how Yamamoto was even better than Senga in NIPPON, we'll see what happens with him. 

Just so you know, this was the transaction I was looking at most this offseason, because I knew Ohtani was going to sign with the Dodgers ad I've taken quite an interest in the young stud. Looks like LA is making a run (a very expensive run) for the World Series.

Tyler Glasnow Dealt to Dodgers

     Well, I've gotten my daily dose of MLB for today, and was astounded by the opening headline. Tyler Glasnow ad Manuel Margot of the Rays were traded to the Dodgers for Ryan Pepiot and Jonny Deluca. Why this trade was made, I will never know. It doesn't make sense for the Rays, the second best team in the AL, to trade their best starter and a starting outfield role for a solid pitcher in Ryan Pepiot (not as good as Glasnow though) and Jonny Deluca. 
    Deluca slashed .262/.311/.429 as an outfielder, and fielded 17 points below the league average! Of course, he only played in 24 games and had 42 at-bats, but still, that fielding percentage is not good. Not good at all.
    The Dodgers are trying to give Glasnow a big time contract, and it seems they have all the money in the world to spend, as they are also going after Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

Pack Your Bags Sonny Gray

  Yes, MLB has left out quite the transaction because of all the foreign stuff. Sonny Gray has left the Twins and is now a member of the St. Louis Cardinals!
    Gray finished second in Cy Youg Award voting this past season (if you are interested on what I thought about that, see https://talkinprobaseball.blogspot.com/2023/11/commentary-on-cy-young-awards.html). He was also the ace of my championship winning fantasy team.
    Anyway, I don't know many details other than Sonny Gray's moving to Missouri. 

Giants sign 6-Year Deal with Foreign Star

     The San Francisco Giants today signed 'Grandson of the Wind,' KBO star Jung Hoo Lee to a six year, 113 million dollar contract. The native of Japan slashed .340/..407/.491 in seven seasons in the KBO. He hit .324 when he was 18 in the league. This is probably the most significant free agent signing so far (with the exception of Ohtani), and most likely a good one for San Francisco's pathetic offense, who finished dead last in the NL in hits, batting average, slugging percentage, and OPS in 2023. They were also fourteenth in runs, doubles, triples, and OBP. So this seems to be a pretty big deal for them. They should give the scouts who found him a raise. 
    Anyway, this was a really good deal for the team, and Lee will probably their best hitter in the 2024 season (unless they grab somebody else).

Stratton joins friend in Kansas City

     Usually, I wouldn't write about a Chris Stratton deal, but seeing as how he just won the World Series, we'll give it a shot.
    I got my MLB email of the day, and it told me that Chris Stratton finished a deal with the Royals, along with Seth Lugo. I'm not really sure why all these players are joining the second worst team in baseball, but 'to each his own.' (Please do not listen to that advice. It is actually rotten). 
    Anyway, my theory is that Chris Stratton became such good friends with Will Smith, you know, hanging out in the bullpen all game, playing Immaculate Grid together and such; that he couldn't be away from his buddy. I have no clue as to why Seth Lugo joined the bandwagon. Probably because he's not landing on a team much worse than the Mets. 

Will Smith joins Royals

     I've just heard today that Will Smith is finalizing a deal with the Royals. The left-handed pitcher has won three straight fall classics with three different teams, and is trying to keep the streak alive. If that's the case, then he probably shouldn't have signed with the Royals. 

News on Ohtani!

  Since Bryce Harper and the Army of Mercker Robots is a baseball news blog, I gotta tell you if Shohei Ohtani signs with somebody, right? Well, unfortunately that time has come. Yes, Ohtani is a Dodger. He reportedly signed the biggest contract in sports history, gaining $700,000,000 in a 10-year deal. 

Wow. 

I can't say I'm surprised, however, because when I was asked by a DBU player who I thought Ohtani was going to, one of my predictions was in fact the Dodgers. Though not my favorite team, it was a clutch pickup, so I've got to give them credit for that. I wonder how Ohtani looks in blue.