MLB Rumors: Yankees, Mets Among 7 'Serious Suitors' for Yoshinobu Yamamoto; Cubs Out

Seven teams have "emerged as serious suitors" for right-handed starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the Nippon Professional Baseball superstar who just won his third straight Pacific League MVP award.

Will Sammon of The Athletic provided the latest news, citing five teams plus two "unidentified clubs" in the pursuit for the 25-year-old phenom.

"Seven teams, including five known clubs, have emerged as serious suitors for Yamamoto, league sources said. In no particular order, the list is believed to include the New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays and the Mets, plus two more unidentified clubs.

Yamamoto is expected to come to the United States this weekend, The Athletic confirmed through league sources. It's believed that the Mets would try to meet with Yamamoto again, just like the other teams remaining seriously interested in signing him. Major league teams can sign Yamamoto through 5 p.m. ET on Jan. 4, but the process is not expected to extend that far, league sources said."

On Tuesday evening, Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reported that the Chicago Cubs are "not expected to proceed in those high-stakes negotiations" on Yamamoto.

Yamamoto, who also won the World Baseball Classic with Japan last March, dominated last season by going 17-6 with a 1.16 ERA, 176 strikeouts and 28 walks in 171 innings for the Orix Buffaloes.

Certain teams haven't been shy about their interest in Yamamoto, namely the Mets and Yankees.

Mets general manager David Stearns and owner Steve Cohen went to Japan to visit with Yamamoto and his family. Stearns said the two sides had a "great meeting."

As Bryan Hoch of MLB.com noted, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman went to Japan last September and saw Yamamoto pitch a no-hitter in person. Cashman said he didn't learn anything more than he didn't already know, and Hoch explained what he meant by that:

"Then Cashman explained: Like several teams, the Yankees have closely monitored Yamamoto for so long that there are no remaining secrets about the standout right-hander. They know what to expect and are convinced he will be a top-flight ace anywhere he goes."

Jon Morosi of MLB Network said Yamamoto is expected to meet with the Yanks on Monday in the United States. However, he also cited the Boston Red Sox, Giants, Dodgers and Cubs as suitors.

All of those aforementioned teams have deep pockets, although Cohen's Mets have the deepest of them all. Still, it'll be a competitive race for Yamamoto as one of the top available pitchers considers a bevy of options.