Latest On Shota Imanaga’s Posting

Reports from Japan have confirmed that the Yokohama DeNA Baystars have agreed to allow left-hander Shota Imanaga to explore the North American market, as he requested. Tatsuhiro Hagiwara, a DeNA executive, stated that the organization supports players who have dreams they want to pursue and have the ability to achieve it, adding an encouraging note to Imanaga’s venture.

However, it’s important to clarify that the Baystars have only agreed to post Imanaga and have not yet officially done so for MLB teams. When the posting window opens, Imanaga will have 45 days to negotiate with Major League clubs. If no deal is reached within that period, he will return to the Baystars for the 2024 Nippon Professional Baseball season.

Imanaga is a highly intriguing player available this winter, ranked 10th on the MLBTR’s list of the top 50 free agents of the 2023-24 class. His impressive credentials include being a two-time NPB All-Star, with a 3.18 ERA and 25% strikeout rate over 1002 2/3 career innings. He also won a gold medal with Japan’s championship team at this year’s World Baseball Classic.

Under the MLB/NPB posting system, a big league team interested in Imanaga would need to give the Baystars a posting fee on top of whatever they agree to pay Imanaga. The posting fee is worth at least 20% of the guaranteed value of Imanaga’s contract, with the Baystars receiving more money depending on the total value.

Imanaga is only the second-best NPB starter on the market, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto holding the top spot. Imanaga’s reps at Octagon might aim to strategically time his posting to capitalize on the market, possibly after Yamamoto has signed. However, this carries some risk, as Yamamoto’s own posting window has yet to begin.

Should this scenario occur, Imanaga might not be posted until sometime in January, creating a bit of a time crunch. This leaves Imanaga with less time to find a new team and acclimate himself to his new continent, new city, and new coaching staff prior to Spring Training.

On the other hand, waiting until later into the offseason to sign isn’t uncommon for upper-tier free agents. If Yamamoto and other top-tier options are off the board by the time Imanaga is available, the remaining suitors might be more willing to engage in a bidding war to sign him.