The sting of losing the Yoshinobu Yamamoto sweepstakes last season still lingers for the New York Yankees, but they may have an immediate shot at redemption with Japan’s next phenom. An anonymous Yankees source says that the club will “do their best” to land the Japanese right-hander Tatsuya Imai.

But then, the Phillies, Mets, and Cubs are also showing strong interest in the Seibu Lions’ star. Of all the teams in contention for his services, the Phillies appear to hold a slight edge.

The news of Tatsuya Imai following Phillies ace Zack Wheeler on Instagram surfaced recently. Notably, Wheeler is one of the few major leaguers followed by the Japanese pitcher. Their Instagram connection alone may not mean much, but just as the update came to X, the Phillies’ nation was excited about the ide

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