Toronto Blue Jays expected to lead bidding for Yu Darvish -MLB Update
Yu Darvish was involved in a number of controversies after ending the 2011 regular season as the highest paid Japanese player at the time, including a divorce from his wife which he tried to keep under the covers but later on was unearthed as the major reason
for his late entry into the offseason market.
Darvish is now looking to land a major contract with a number of teams around the American major league after being granted permission from his team in the Japanese league, the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters.
Teams around the MLB had until December 14, 2011, to post their bids in order to gain the negotiation rights to the player for the next 30 days; it seems as if the Toronto Blue Jays will be the club awarded the rights after posting a bid potentially above
$40 million up to even $50 million.
Some are even revealing that the Blue Jays are outbidding the New York Yankees for the rights that could potentially land them the player, but on the other hand, it also might not.
“I was told Rogers Communications said: ‘Whatever it costs, sign him,’ ” said one Blue Jays executive. “Only (president) Paul Beeston and (general manager) Alex Anthopoulos know the number on the bid in baseball operations.”
One talent evaluator of a team in the MLB was asked at how much it would cost in order to ensure that the player will be playing for them next season. He answered by saying that currently he is making close to $6 million annually in Japan, meaning that he
would settle for at least double that yearly in the United States. According to him, a contract in the ranges of four to five years and above $70 million might be the way to go.
"He is making $6 million a year in Japan on the field, close to that off the field," a scout from a team that did not post a bid told the newspaper. "So you are starting at $12 million a year over here. I would say five years for $75 million is about right.''
Darvish is likely to flare up things with his presence in MLB next season.
Tags: