{"id":769029,"date":"2017-11-15T11:29:03","date_gmt":"2017-11-15T16:29:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thesportsdaily.com\/?p=769029"},"modified":"2017-11-15T11:29:03","modified_gmt":"2017-11-15T16:29:03","slug":"report-new-york-mets-will-consider-pursuing-shohei-otani","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesportsdaily.com\/news\/report-new-york-mets-will-consider-pursuing-shohei-otani\/","title":{"rendered":"Report: New York Mets Will Consider Pursuing Shohei Otani"},"content":{"rendered":"
The New York Mets have a lot of needs this winter, and they appear to be open to a pursuit of the top international free agent on the market. Starting pitcher Shohei Otani is expected to be posted by the Nippon Hokkaido-Ham Fighters, and his unique circumstances may leave him within the Mets’ financial reach, Marc Carig of Newsday reports<\/a>. Otani, who is a top line starter in Japan with the ability to hit for power as an outfielder, is a truly unique prospect due to his decision to come to the major leagues early. Most top Japanese players play at home until age 25, when they get posted by their clubs and are eligible to sign for any amount of money a big league team offers. Otani is coming to the majors at age 23, meaning he would be subject to Major League Baseball’s international free agency guidelines, limiting his signing bonus to a maximum of $3.5 million dollars.<\/p>\n