Masahiro Tanaka is in the United States to meet with interested teams, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reported Thursday. The Japanese right-hander will meet with as many as 12 teams in the Los Angeles area by Friday.
The Toronto Blue Jays are among the many teams that have had multiple discussions with Tanaka’s representatives at Excel Sports Management, according to Heyman. However, it’s not clear if the Blue Jays have an in-person meeting planned. Many of the organization’s top team executives were in Toronto Wednesday at the club’s rookie camp.
The Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Angels, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees and Arizona Diamondbacks are believed to have meetings planned, Heyman writes. Teams will have access to a medical report on the 25-year-old Tanaka.
Any team can bid for Tanaka as long as the club is prepared to pay a $20 million release fee to his former team, Japan’s Rakuten Golden Eagles. Most observers view Tanaka as the top available arm and expect him to obtain more than $100 million on a long-term contract when he does sign.
Agent Casey Close is meeting with teams today and may meet with as many as five or six teams per day, Heyman reports.
