Tatsuya Imai newest comments could result in nightmare scenario for Guardians

When it comes to recruiting players from Japan, the current iteration of the Los Angeles Dodgers stands alone. 

Although the Dodgers always have a logistical advantage given that Los Angeles is the closest MLB city to Japan, they’ve reached a new pantheon as of late thanks to the presence of Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki.

That was until Tatsuya Imai entered the picture.

In a recent interview with retired Japanese pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka, Imai said that he had no interest in joining the Dodgers and was looking forward to beating them at some point during the 2025 season. 

While that’s great news for all of baseball since it means the Dodgers won’t be as much of a super team, it also means that Imai could end up with an American League standing in the Guardians way. 

"Of course, I’d enjoy playing alongside Ohtani, Yamamoto, and Sasaki, but winning against a team like that and becoming a world champion would be the most valuable thing in my life. If anything, I'd rather take them down,” Imai said on Matsuzaka’s show, “Hodo Station,” (h/t MLB.com’s Michael Clair and Ayako Oikawa)

Iami also added some insight into the kind of team that he’s interested in joining. 

"If there were another Japanese player on the same team, I could just ask them about anything, right?" Imai said. "But that’s actually not what I’m looking for. In a way, I want to experience that sense of survival. When I come face-to-face with cultural differences, I want to see how I can overcome them on my own -- that’s part of what I’m excited about.”

Tatsuya Imai’s newest comments make it seem like he could end up in the American League

MLB teams who currently have Japanese players on their roster are the Dodgers (Sasaki, Ohtani and Yamamoto), Padres (Yu Darvish and Yuki Matsui), Angels (Yusei Kikuchi), Cubs (Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga) , Red Sox (Masataka Yoshida) and Mets (Kodai Senga). 

So that eliminates four National League teams but just two American League teams. 

Even though his comments make it seem like there’s a chance he could sign with the Guardians, it gives even more credence to the thought that he’s going to end up signing with the Yankees or Blue Jays, which would make Cleveland’s quest to win the American League pennant that much tougher. 

The Blue Jays have gotten plenty of traction as a suitor for Imai, and for good reason, as they came within a game of winning the World Series and were finalists for both Ohtani and Sasaki. 

They have an All-World player in Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and a young, balanced roster that features plenty of studs. Their biggest flaw is an older pitching staff that’s looking to fill two spots in the rotation, which is where Imai could come in. 

Despite standing just 5-foot-11, he’s been one of the best pitchers in Nippon Professional Baseball and just finished a season where he had a 1.92 ERA in 163 2/3 innings. His fastball can sit at 97 miles per hour and he has a unique slider that could fool MLB hitters.

And then there’s the Yankees. While New York just forked over $218 million last offseason to make Max Fried the highest-paid left-handed pitcher in the history of the sport, they’ve never met a player they can’t afford.

While there’s a chance this could all become a moot point if Imai signs with the Phillies or Mets, it’s hard to believe that one of the AL’s big spenders won’t try to entice him with an expensive contract. 

It’s also hard to believe that would come from the Guardians given the team’s measly payroll and lack of relationships with Japanese teams. 

Still, it’s fun to dream — even if that dream could quickly turn into a nightmare.