By Sang-cheol Lee = The Major League Baseball (MLB) New York Mets are pursuing the signing of Japanese National Baseball Team ace Yoshinobu Yamanoto (24, Orix Buffaloes).

“Yamamoto would be an interesting option,” US media outlet SNY said on Aug. 18 (KST) while looking ahead to the Mets’ starting rotation for the 2024 season.

According to the outlet, Mets president Billy Eppler traveled to Japan this year to observe Yamamoto pitch.

Yamamoto is currently the top right-handed pitcher in Nippon Professional Baseball. In 2021 and 2022, he won the Pacific League Most Valuable Player (MVP) and Sawamura Award after leading the league in wins, ERA, strikeouts, and winning percentage.온라인바카

In 162 career Nippon Professional Baseball games, he has a 63-26 record with 856 strikeouts and a 1.93 ERA. This season, he’s been equally impressive, going 9-3 with a 1.74 ERA in 13 games and 103 strikeouts.

He’s also done a great job for the Japanese National Baseball Team. He led Japan to victories at the 2019 Premier12, 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC).

SNY described Yamamoto as “a Chris Bassett with more velocity” and said he “could be a two- or three-way starter in the majors.”

The Mets previously signed Senga Godai, formerly of the SoftBank Hawks, to a five-year, $75 million contract before the season, and the media expected Yamamoto to be treated better.