Giants get bad news on Tatsuya Imai free agency odds from ESPN insider originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The San Francisco Giants are in the market for starting pitching this winter, as they look to bolster a rotation without Justin Verlander for the 2026 MLB season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementFortunately, there are a few strong options on the free agent market this winter. Ranger Suarez, Framber Valdez, and Tatsuya Imai are some of the best options still on the market after Dylan Cease's $210 million Toronto Blue Jays contract.
However, according to ESPN's Buster Olney, Giants fans got some bad news on their pursuit of Imai and other top free agent pitchers this offseason.
Giants fans get bad news on pursuit of top FA pitchers Tatsuya Iami, Ranger Suarez, Framber Valdez
"The Giants have been repeatedly linked to Tatsuya Imai, the premier free agent pitcher from Japan," Olney reports. "But a lot of their market pitching inquiries have been for more modestly priced arms -- a strong indication they aren't chasing the highest priced pitchers, like Imai."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThis update from Olney is bad news for the Giants' chances of signing one of the top free agent pitchers this winter.
While Imai seemed like a clear fit, with the Giants' need, the West Coast boost, and Imai's desire to compete against Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers, this update all but shuts down any chance of the Giants signing Imai.
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But what makes this report even worse for Giants fans is that this report isn't exclusive to just Imai. The Giants are also not likely to be involved in the markets for the other top starting pitchers.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementRanger Suarez, Framber Valdez, and Imai are all but confirmed not to be going to San Francisco with this report.
The next best options are Michael King, Zac Gallen, Nick Martinez, Chris Bassitt, Merrill Kelly, and Zack Littell. Those aren't the worst options, but considering the Giants have to contend with the Dodgers, their lack of interest in the top arms is disappointing.
Imai, Valdez, and Suarez are all likely to go elsewhere, as Buster Posey and the Giants are currently not planning to target the top pitchers on the market, according to this report from Olney.
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