MLB Rumors: Tyler Glasnow trade favorites, Red Sox dream move, Giants Plan B

MLB Rumors: Red Sox dream signing named Yoshinobu Yamamoto by insider

You'd be hard-pressed to find a Boston Red Sox fan who isn't aware that new Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow needs to make some big changes and big splashes this offseason. Perhaps in a dream world, that might mean Shohei Ohtani calling Fenway Park home. And while that may be on the table, there is also perhaps a more prudent high-end free agent that the Red Sox could pursue, another Japanese star: RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan broke down 10 teams fascinating him in the 2023-24 offseason as the Winter Meetings approach and the Red Sox were listed among them. With Breslow at the helm now and a dire need for starting pitching, Passan surmised that Yamamoto would be the "perfect" target for Boston.

"With a current payroll of just over $150 million and Sale set to hit free agency after the season, Boston has room and need for a frontline starter," Passan wrote. "While there are plenty of options, one in particular fits the Red Sox best -- though to get him, they'll need to run the risk of waiting, as he's not expected to sign until after next week's Winter Meetings, by which point other starters will have come off the board."

The 25-year-old Yamamoto is coveted by just about every MLB team that can afford him as he makes his way to the United States from the NPB in Japan. He's going to command a monster payday, but the Red Sox have the money to make that happen and compete with any other franchise to help lure him to Boston.

On top of that, a recent report stated that Yamamoto wants to play with another Japanese player, which is a box the Red Sox would check after signing Masataka Yoshida last offseason. So if the Red Sox do want to make a monster splash, then Yamamoto might be the most likely and best-case scenario for Breslow and Co.