The race for Shohei Otani took a significant turn Sunday when two major East Coast contenders were told they would not make the cut for a face-to-face meeting with the Japanese two-star, according to multiple reports.
New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman and Boston President Dave Dombrowski both said their teams were informed by Otani's representatives that he would not be meeting with them. The Yankees had the second-most amount of international bonus money behind the Rangers, though the signing bonus isn't expected to be a major factor in Otani's decision. The Minnesota Twins, the only other team with at least $3 million in bonus money, also did not make the final cut.
The Rangers are hoping to meet with Otani, who is in Los Angeles, in the coming days ahead of the winter meetings. The Rangers have been given no indication they are out of the running. He has until Dec. 22 to sign with a major league team.
The move, however, puts a focus on a different contender for Otani's services: The Seattle Mariners. According to a tweet from Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, Cashman told reporters if he was a West Coast team in a smaller market that he would be excited right now.
Two other possibilities: San Diego and the San Francisco Giants. The issue there is both teams are NL clubs and thus might have a hard time finding enough at-bats to satisfy Otani's desire to both pitch and play.
The Rangers have already sent a presentation to Otani and are hoping to follow it up with a face-to-face meeting. They have invested six years into building a relationship with Otani. Assistant GM Josh Boyd has logged numerous trips to Japan in that time to help further a relationship.
