"Some team could very well be celebrating their resolution to upgrade their rotation with Tatsuya Imai, who will need to make a decision by Friday. It may actually come today or Thursday because he'll have to pass a physical before the deal becomes official. The righty has been taking meetings in LA and told Japanese TV he has narrowed his list down to 3-4 teams, and a report out of Japan had the White Sox emerging as a serious contender."
"That appears to have been a matter of some details being lost in translation, as subsequent stateside reports say the Sox are merely on the periphery. Everyone gets cagey about this stuff, especially when deadlines are involved, so it's hard to take anything super seriously until we get something more concrete. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see the news drop before the ball."
"Buying Bullpens Doesn't Always Work Every year, folks get upset about dumpster-diving Jed Hoyer and cheap Tom Ricketts choosing to take a lower-cost route when it comes to bullpen construction. That's certainly been true this winter, as Hoyer has added five relievers at a cost of around $21 million, which is less than the recent contract signed by former Cub Brad Keller."
Tatsuya Imai has narrowed his choices to three or four MLB teams and must decide by Friday after passing a required physical; meetings in Los Angeles preceded reports linking the White Sox as a potential suitor. Stateside accounts later described Chicago as peripheral and attributed earlier attention to translation issues, with a final decision possibly arriving before New Year's. The Cubs pursued a cost-conscious bullpen this winter, signing five relievers for about $21 million. Past high-priced bullpen signings for the Cubs yielded limited value, with Héctor Neris, Brandon Morrow, and Craig Kimbrel cited as costly underperformers.
Read at Cubsinsider
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