Editorials

Dodgers Rumors: Dodgers All-In For Tanaka, Say They Won’t Be Outbid

http://youtu.be/ZpETMqo9jgk
The Los Angeles Dodgers have been rather quiet on their plans for Japanese right-hander Masahiro Tanaka thus far, but have been rumored as one of the favorites all off-season.

It seems as if the front office has decided what their plan for Tanaka will be and are ready to execute with two weeks to go. According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the Dodgers have announced their intentions for the 25-year-old right-hander:



Tanaka was posted by his NPB team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles, on December 24 and teams have exactly one month to compete for his services. Any team that decides to sign the right-hander will have to pay a $20 million posting fee to the Golden Eagles. The Dodgers have long been considered one of the favorites to land Tanaka, but until this point the front office hadn’t shown much interest.

GM Ned Colletti mentioned that the team had spoken with his agent, Casey Close, and that the two sides were in the feeling out process. The Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs have been mentioned as the other favorites for the 25-year-old.

Last season, Tanaka was 24-0 with 1.27 ERA with 183 strikeouts in 212 innings, leading the Golden Eagles to the NPB championship. Many have pegged Tanaka as the best available starting pitcher and have waited for his posting before beginning their starting pitcher search.

If Tanaka is signed, the Dodgers rotation would consist of Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, Tanaka, Ryu and Dan Haren, giving them the best rotation in all of baseball.

Go get him, Ned.

UPDATE: Bob Nightengale of USA Today followed up his earlier tweet with this about an hour ago: 

UPDATE: Ken Gurnick of Dodgers.com had this to say as well:

The Dodgers aren’t nearly as likely to engage in a bidding war for Japanese free-agent pitcher Masahiro Tanaka as they were a year ago when they landed Korean pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu.

UPDATE: Nikkan Sports is reporting the Dodgers were among teams to meet with Tanaka:

The New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have likely met with Tanaka in the Beverly Hills area.

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Vincent Samperio

Vince is currently the Associate Editor and Social Media Manager for Dodgers Nation. Hailing from San Pedro, CA and a student at Cal State Long Beach, Vince has previously written for the Daily 49er and LASF Magazine.

3 Comments

  1. “If Tanaka is signed, the Dodgers rotation would consist of Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, Tanaka, Ryu and Dan Haren, giving them the best rotation in all of baseball.”
    This could possibly be one of the best rotations ever!

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