Tanaka, Likely to be posted---- Let's get ready to rumble!!!!!

I would say Tanaka would cal Matsui and ask him how his time in NY was, If he does its a no brainer. Matsui was adored here in NY and had a large Japanese following. The Yanks know this and are still feeling the sting of losing homegrown Cano. They will open the pocketbook for this one. They also know they need him badly to compete in the East

Unless a darkhorse team is willing to throw ungodly amounts of money at him, I dont see how he doesn't sign with New York.

jcmint said:

I would say Tanaka would cal Matsui and ask him how his time in NY was, If he does its a no brainer. Matsui was adored here in NY and had a large Japanese following. The Yanks know this and are still feeling the sting of losing homegrown Cano. They will open the pocketbook for this one. They also know they need him badly to compete in the East

Click to expand...

Correct. Virtually every sign points to one of three teams getting him. Dodgers, Yankees, Mariners. I doubt he goes anywhere else. Cubs have a good chance but not sure he would end up there.

The Yankees may go up to five years 17-18 mil per. As will the Dodgers and Mariners I believe. The M's could even go 6. I'm not so sure the Dodgers will go all in because of the pitching they have.

The Yankees have Ichiro and Kuroda. Tanaka is going to look around and see where he will A) Get the most money and B) Be the most successful/comfortable. The Yanks, Mariners, and the Dodgers are willing to pay more than every other team and that is virtually confirmed. The Yanks can't contend without him. If they don't sign him then this offseason offensive spending spree will go to waste. They need pitching and Tanaka is the only one worth it.

Matsui, Kuroda, Ichiro have all performed well and have enjoyed their time in NY. Kuroda and Matsui are Idols for many.

I think that many are doubting the Yankees in many ways. People think that they need to be under 189 which is false now. Kuroda will have a huge impact. Most of all the Yankees NEED him to compete.

The Mariners aren't competing this year or until their prospects are up and good. They don't NEED Tanaka. Same with the Dodgers. They don't NEED Tanaka. They have pitching.

I'm not saying the Yanks will for sure get him but they are one of the few teams that actually NEED him and don't just WANT him.

I'm sticking with my choice that the only realistic landing places are Yankees, Cubs, Mariners, Dodgers.

1. Yankees
2. Dodgers
3. Mariners
4. Red Sox
5. Rangers

In order of where I believe he will sign. I don't believe he will end up with any team not on this list.

aarne13 said:

Ding!

Click to expand...

That's what I thought. Thanks for confirming!

I say he signs with Texas forming an Awesome Asian duo. Just my thoughts.

Angels are just as desperate for pitching and they really want him too, which is why they havent signed garza yet or given him an offer.

It's going to be fun to watch. He could go any where. I think he goes well over 100mil total contract, maybe 120 mil.

sportscardtheory said:

1. Yankees
2. Dodgers
3. Mariners
4. Red Sox
5. Rangers

In order of where I believe he will sign. I don't believe he will end up with any team not on this list.

Click to expand...

+1000!

I highly highly doubt any team not on your list will be able to make any sort of play besides the Cubs. They are the dark horse IMO.

The Yankees haven't had the best luck with Japanese pitchers. Hideki Irabu and Kei Igawa come to mind. Two of the biggest frauds to ever come from the Far East.

The 2nd question would be, how good will he be here and will the $$$$ be worth it??

All have said, he is no Darvish. Doesnt have the same stuff and isn't as good.
They said for a long time he would be a good 3, maybe a 2, if everything goes well.

When the post was going to be 50-100 and the avg per year, lower, maybe around 10 mil,
this seemed like a good deal. Less counted against the cap.

But with the post now low enough, that prolly 20 teams will make the 20mil offer and have a chance
to negociate, some are saying well over 100 mil and probably 16mil+.
If the winning bidder has to pay 20mil per for 5-6 years, for a guy that could come here and be a #4
or take 2-3 years to become a 3, man this could be a brutal deal and not what many teams are
expecting. Maxe was saying the yanks need him. I am saying the angels need him. What if he is a 4?
That isn't was either teams needs at 18mil per. Would hurt each team. This is going to be fun to watch,
but a lot of risk as well.

Interesting that the sox signed a player from japan today, now they have quite a few guy to call him.

This is how I rank the teams
tier 1
mariners
dodgers
tier 2
yanks
cubs
angels
red sox
rangers
tier3
dbacks

the tiers aren't in any order.

Gonna be nuts. Probably a few surprise teams too.

I'd love for the angels to get him, but if its garza for 4/15 or tanaka for 6/20

which do you take??

garza, we know who he is and his history.
tanaka, we dont know who he is and he was way over worked.

I'm going with 3 dark horse picks:


1. Brewers
2. White Sox
3. Padres


Because.....reasons. And starting pitchers.

klute14 said:

The Yankees haven't had the best luck with Japanese pitchers. Hideki Irabu and Kei Igawa come to mind. Two of the biggest frauds to ever come from the Far East.

Click to expand...

You mean the Yankees don't have scouts?

The Rockies called Tanaka and told him that Hideo Nomo threw a no hitter at Coors Field. They then dared him to try and replicate that feat.

Tanaka replied (in a perfect Neil Patrick Harris voice) - "Challenge Accepted!"

A better comparison is Ryu and Kuroda. Not Darvish. Tanaka is not a power pitcher. He has one of the best sinker/splitters that many scouts have ever seen. I envision him to be a great number 3 or a very good number 2.

gmsieb. Do you really expect the Angels to get him? I want an honest opinion not a fan opinion. I have heard virtually nothing of them being even close to the front.

They can't be ranked even in the top five at this point in terms of Tanaka going there.

If going on what scouts, gm's, assistants and people in baseball and not just on personal opinion then the tier's look like this:
Tier 1:
Mariners
Dodgers
Yankees
Tier 1B:
Cubs
Tier 2:
Red Sox
Angels
Rangers
Tier 3:
Diamondbacks
and everyone else

maxe0213 said:

A better comparison is Ryu and Kuroda. Not Darvish. Tanaka is not a power pitcher. He has one of the best sinker/splitters that many scouts have ever seen. I envision him to be a great number 3 or a very good number 2.

gmsieb. Do you really expect the Angels to get him? I want an honest opinion not a fan opinion. I have heard virtually nothing of them being even close to the front.

They can't be ranked even in the top five at this point in terms of Tanaka going there.

If going on what scouts, gm's, assistants and people in baseball and not just on personal opinion then the tier's look like this:
Tier 1:
Mariners
Dodgers
Yankees
Tier 1B:
Cubs
Tier 2:
Red Sox
Angels
Rangers
Tier 3:
Diamondbacks
and everyone else

Click to expand...

An honest/non fan?????? You must not be reading everything I write. I have said who I think gets him and named the teams who want him and have money.

I'm an Angels fan, saying 2 of our rivals are most likely to get him(that's as honest/non homer as it gets)


I know the angels want him and can get the money for him. They are in it with the rest of the big names. They will spend right with the yanks.

I still think he goes to the mariners or dodgers. And would not be shocked, if it was any of the other teams mentioned. The angels, just like the yanks, were
waiting to hear if he was posted, before going after garza or another pitcher. They have wanted him since mid season last year. Was on the radio out here all the time.
Angels arent like other teams, they dont tell the scouts everything they are thinking, so you may not here about it. Like vladi, pujols, wilson, josh, none were talked about, all were shocks, so was tori hunter. The angels name is mentioned all the time with tanaka talk. Google angels and tanaka. they have been scouting him since last season(in the news), went to japan. They want him and it has been no secret. It was talked about on the mlb channel during the winter meetings. It's not breaking news. They have been said to be all in.

My honest/non homer opinon. He signs with mariners or dodgers. Then the other teams all have a chance. He will ultimately pick where he wants to play. Money will be pretty close from 5-10 teams. And most of the teams have had players from his country or live in areas where players from japan would like to live. I would say the yanks have a slightly better chance than the angels, just no where close to as big of a difference, as you believe it to be. Yes the yanks have a winning history, but most (recent) players went there for the money(or because they had so much talent), and the yanks were always the high bidder. Just like we just saw with cano, most players follow the money. A few give a discount, very rare. But in the late 90's and most of the 2000's, the yanks were the big dog, all alone, with the sox and a few teams like the angels following a ways behind. Now there are quite a few very strong teams, spending a ton of money, and are probably more likely to win over the next few years. What used to be so attractive, isn't as pretty or the only team doing it now. Over the last few years, as far as playoffs, if he wants to win a series, he'd go to the sox, tigers, cards, or rangers, neither of our teams.

Hope this explains where I am coming from. No anger in this, it's all in fun. So, I hope we can keep it calm, without the normal message board chit talk.
I think I told you b4, my dad, 3 uncles, an aunt, and my grand parents all came from the bronx, born and raised. I know the way yankee fans think, what they want, and how they
view their team, well above all others. I know the yankee fans mind, better than most know themselves. I grew up in it, debating it daily and all summer long.

I started this thread because, I am just excited to watch the process, no matter who gets him, should be good tv.

Most recent rotoworl report..

Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports reports that the Rangers are doing "extensive background work" on Japanese right-hander Masahiro Tanaka.

Passan notes that the Rangers have also been connected to Shin-Soo Choo and have "room for one significant expenditure." The Rakuten Eagles haven't officially said that they'll post Tanaka, but the righty has made known his desire to play in the states and Rakuten is expected to let it happen. In addition to the Rangers, the Yankees, Cubs, Angels, Dodgers and Diamondbacks are among the teams expected to be in the mix for Tanaka.






mlb trade rumors
One GM tells Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter) that he doesn't think there's any doubt that Masahiro Tanaka will get more than $100MM.

The Angels seem to be holding off on a DH like as Raul Ibanez until they know how much they will spend on a pitcher. That pitcher could be right-hander Matt Garza as they have heavy interest in him, sources say. That pitcher could also be Tanaka.

article, I found :::Article from SBNation.com
By Nathan Aderhold, Dec 17 2013, 4:01pm
The Rakuten Golden Eagles could potentially get much more money for posting Masahiro Tanaka than the $20 million release fee if they employ the "package deal" tactic often used in Latin America, reports Ben Badler of Baseball America.
While there is absolutely no word that this option is on the table, Badler speculates that the Golden Eagles could rectify their discontent with the new posting fee cap by packaging Tanaka along with another, less-coveted Japanese player in order to get a larger return.
In the scenario Badler proposes, Rakuten would allow Tanaka and another Eagles player to be posted under the orders that Tanaka will only sign with an MLB club if the other player is given a contract as well.
The deal for the secondary player could be as little as the league minimum, but his release fee would be considerably more, allowing Rakuten to net much more than the $20 million they'd get from sending Tanaka stateside alone.
The key cog in these dealings would be a fourth party, an agent, who would be aligned with the interests of Rakuten, Tanaka, and the other player. This agent would ensure that Tanaka doesn't agree to a deal until the second player is signed, which ensures that Rakuten receives two release fees.
The total wouldn't come close to the $60 million or so that the club was hoping to get before the posting rules changed, but it would net them as much as $40 million.

gmsieb said:

I still think he goes to the mariners or dodgers. And would not be shocked, if it was any of the other teams mentioned. The angels, just like the yanks, were
waiting to hear if he was posted, before going after garza or another pitcher. They have wanted him since mid season last year. Was on the radio out here all the time.
Angels arent like other teams, they dont tell the scouts everything they are thinking, so you may not here about it. Like vladi, pujols, wilson, josh, none were talked about, all were shocks, so was tori hunter. The angels name is mentioned all the time with tanaka talk. Google angels and tanaka. they have been scouting him since last season(in the news), went to japan. They want him and it has been no secret. It was talked about on the mlb channel during the winter meetings. It's not breaking news. They have been said to be all in.

My honest/non homer opinon. He signs with mariners or dodgers. Then the other teams all have a chance. He will ultimately pick where he wants to play. Money will be pretty close from 5-10 teams. And most of the teams have had players from his country or live in areas where players from japan would like to live. I would say the yanks have a slightly better chance than the angels, just no where close to as big of a difference, as you believe it to be. Yes the yanks have a winning history, but most (recent) players went there for the money(or because they had so much talent), and the yanks were always the high bidder.

Click to expand...

Your missing a few key points when comparing just the Yanks and the Angels. The Yanks have had a higher win percentage than the Angels recently so if he's thinking about winning which you make a point of he's not going to be going to the Angels or the Mariners. He's going to the Dodgers, Yanks, or the Rangers.
Also. I think you don't put as much credence into having players that have made the transition successfully. Not in the past. I'm talking about now. The Angels do not have a player like that which significantly hurts their chances. The M's have Iwakuma, Rangers Darvish, Yankees Kuroda/Ichiro. Also. Tanaka is going to do his research. I'm sure he will see the contracts of Hamilton, Pujols, Wilson etc. that are huge and the players have performed well below average. Coincidence? Maybe but he may think it has something to do with the angels and the entire organization.

I understand your perspective but the Angels have virtually nothing to add over teams like the M's, Rangers or the Yankees. Unless they blow them out of the water which will never happen with the high priced spending likely to come from big teams.

I respect your opinion but I find it very highly unlikely he ends up with the Angels, Diamondbacks or teams like that.

If Tanaka is willing to wait for prospects to come up until the team competes then the Cubs and Mariners become front runners but if he wants to win now he will choose the Yankees or the Rangers or the Dodgers (out of the teams listed. Obviously Tigers, Red Sox, Cardinals etc. would be better but they aren't likely to be in)

As for the comment about the Yankees having most recent players come to the Bronx because of money lets look at this season. Ellsbury came for two less years and less money. Beltran came for less money. Players still value the Yankee name even though many on this board think it has faltered.

Tanaka added to the Bronx pushes them up to strong contenders for division title as well as leaders for a wild card and I'm sure he knows that.

I'm very interested to see what happens as well.

I said, if he was thinking about winning, it would be tigers, cards, rangers, sox, I ddint mention the angels .

My opinon is he goes to the dodgers or mariners. Sounds like we agree. Not sure why we are debating

Angles are a top spender.

More news.

NEW YORK -- The New York Yankees were hit with a $28 million luxury tax bill, pushing their total past the $250 million mark since the penalty began in 2003.
[h=4]More Money, More Problems[/h]

The Yankees had the highest payroll in baseball for 2013, but it didn't translate to postseason success and it cost them $28.1 million in luxury tax fines.

Team	Final Payroll
Yankees	$237M
Dodgers*	236.9
Red Sox*	176.5
Phillies	166.2
Tigers*	154.7
Angels	143.7
Giants	141.3
Rangers	137.2
Blue Jays	125.9
Nationals	120.9
Cardinals*	119.6
White Sox	116.7
Reds*	116.1
Orioles	103.3
Cubs	100.9
Braves*	95.3
Mets	95.1
Brewers	92.7
Mariners	91.1
Diamondbacks	90.2
Indians*	88.9
Royals	86.6
Rockies	78.8
Twins	76.1
Pirates*	74.6
Padres	74.2
A's*	71.1
Rays*	64.6
Marlins	42.3
Astros	29.3
*Made playoffs

According to Major League Baseball calculations sent to teams Tuesday, the Los Angeles Dodgers were the only other team that exceeded the tax threshold this year and must pay $11.4 million. Boston finished just under for the second straight year, coming in $225,666 shy of the $178 million mark.
Figures include average annual values of contracts for players on 40-man rosters, earned bonuses and escalators, adjustments for cash in trades and $10.8 million per team in benefits.
Because the Yankees have been over the tax threshold at least four consecutive times, they pay at a 50 percent rate on the overage, and their $28,113,945 bill was second only to their $34.1 million payment following the 2005 season. The Yankees are responsible for $252.7 million of the $285.1 million in tax paid by all clubs over the past 11 years.
Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner said he hopes to get under the threshold next year, when it rises to $189 million. That would reset the team's tax rate to 12.5 percent for 2015 and get the Yankees some revenue-sharing refunds.
But following agreements Tuesday on a $2 million, one-year deal with second basemanBrian Roberts and a $7 million, two-year contract with left-hander Matt Thornton, the Yankees are at $177.7 million for 15 players next year, when benefits are likely to total between $11 million and $12 million. Their only hope to get below the threshold appears to be if an arbitrator upholds most of Alex Rodriguez's 211-game suspension, relieving the team of a large percentage of the third baseman's $25 million salary.
Tax money is used to fund player benefits and MLB's Industry Growth Fund.
The Yankees finished with the highest regular payroll for the 15th consecutive year, winding up at a record $237,018,889. The Dodgers, in their first full season under new ownership, were just $146,647 behind after nearly doubling spending from $129.1 million.
Regular payrolls include salaries, earned bonuses and pro-rated shares of signing bonuses.
Los Angeles had a higher payroll for the tax: $243 million to New York's $234 million. But because the Dodgers didn't exceed the threshold in 2012, they pay at a 17.5 percent rate and owe $11,415,959.
Checks to the commissioner's office are due by Jan. 21.
Houston, which lost more than 100 games for the third straight season, had a payroll less than one-eighth that of the Yankees and Dodgers. The Astros' finished at $29.3 million, the lowest total in the major leagues since the 2008 Florida Marlins and just $1.3 million more than Rodriguez made with the Yankees.
After trading many of their stars following an unsuccessful first season in their new downtown ballpark, the Marlins lowered their payroll to $42.3 million from $89.9 million in 2012. Minnesota dropped from $101 million to $76 million.
Toronto boosted spending from $92 million to nearly $126 million.
The average salary increased 7.1 percent, to $3,326,645 from $3,105,093, according to MLB's calculations, the steepest rise since 2006. The players' association has not yet released its final figures for this year.