Blue Jays Urged To Pursue Japanese Ace After World Series...

By Shaun McAvoy

Contributing Sports Writer

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The Toronto Blue Jays nearly won the World Series, and will look to improve this offseason.

Toronto was mere inches away from winning Game 7 of the World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers, but after a devastating loss, needs to make roster adjustments. The Blue Jays offense ranked as one of the best in the league, scoring 798 runs, but their pitching staff posted a 4.19 ERA, ranking in the lower half of the league.

With multiple Blue Jays starters set to hit free agency after next season, MLB.com's Keegan Matheson urged the team to pursue three-time NPB All-Star Tatsuya Imai in free agency.

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"Tatsuya Imai wants to do what the Blue Jays just came so close to doing," Matheson wrote Wednesday. "The 27-year-old Japanese star is coming to Major League Baseball, posted earlier this month by the Saitama Seibu Lions with a signing window that expires Jan. 2. Enter the Blue Jays, who have long been interested in landing a Japanese star.

"The spotlight would shine even brighter on a pitcher of Imai’s talent, which is all part of what the Blue Jays are chasing. Wins. Whiffs. Strikeouts. Eyeballs. The Blue Jays have major rotation questions beyond 2026, which is work they’ll need to get ahead of. He’ll need to land in the right situation to continue his development, but the Blue Jays offer so much of this at the highest levels, from their facilities to a coaching staff with a track record of taking solid starting pitchers and turning them up a notch."

Imai made it known that he does not want to join the Dodgers, stating that he would rather win against them. The 27-year-old hurler posted a 1.92 ERA with 178 strikeouts over 163 2/3 innings in Japan last season, and likely won't land a deal as big as Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

The Blue Jays have major starting rotation questions after next season, and bringing in a 27-year-old pitcher like Imai would give them a solid starter in their rotation for years to come. If Imai wants to win against the Dodgers, who better to sign with than the team that almost beat them.

More MLB: Blue Jays ‘Checked In’ On $116.5M Infielder: Report

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