Yoshinobu Yamamoto Rumors: Former GM reveals Giants or Mets expected to make 'the highest bid' for Japanese ace

Japanese pitching sensation Yoshinobu Yamamoto's sweepstakes have been in the headlines in the last few days. As per events that have unfolded in the last week, it's pretty clear that his signing will be announced soon.

As reported, Yamamoto met the New York Yankees and the New York Mets twice last week. Moreover, two teams from the NL West, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants, have also been strongly linked with Yamamoto's services.

Former general manager for three teams in the MLB and Insider Jim Bowden provided an update on X/Twitter in line with Yamamoto's signing. In his tweet, he mentioned that the Yankees and the Dodgers would be the favorites to land him. Whereas, the Giants and the Mets are expected to be the highest bidders.

Moreover, he expects the Philadelphia Phillies, Boson Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays to be the backburners and could slide in surprisingly.

Bowden further mentioned that he is expecting the contract to be in the range of $250-$300 million with a posting fee of $50 million and an eight to 12-year contract on offer:

Yamamoto has until Jan. 4 to strike an agreement.

A bit about why Yoshinobu Yamamoto is heading the pitching market

This offseason, a lot of starting pitchers, like Blake Snell, Clayton Kershaw and trade target Corbin Burnes, are still finding their potential suitors. However, one who hasn't even been in the MLB is taking all the attention.

Last season, he went 16-6 with an impressive 1.21 ERA. In the process, he struck out 169 hitters in 164 innings, threw his second hitter and led his team to the Japan Series.

Whoever signs Yoshinobu Yamamoto will be getting a one-of-a-kind athlete who has won three straight Pacific League MVP honors as well as three straight Sawamura honors, which are equivalent to the Cy Young.

Moreover, he is the third player to have won the MVP award thrice, joining the coveted list of Ichiro Suzuki and Hisashi Yamada.