Coveted Japanese free agent: Instead of joining Dodgers, ‘I’d rather take them down’

Ever since Shohei Ohtani chose to sign with the Dodgers and Yoshinobu Yamamoto joined him just weeks later, the expectation every time a Japanese star hits the free-agent market has been that he’ll sign with Los Angeles. And it’s pretty sound reasoning. 

The Dodgers spend like money grows on trees — because when you have a marketing monopoly over the rest of the league in an entire country, it does — but it’s not even just about the money. Each star from Japan who chooses to call Dodger Stadium his home makes it that much more appealing of a destination for the next one, which helped them sign Rōki Sasaki despite his amateur free agent status leveling the financial playing field. 

Nonetheless, if you’re taking Tatsuya Imai at his word, the Dodgers might not have the upper hand this time around. 

“Of course, I’d enjoy playing alongside Ohtani, Yamamoto, and Sasaki,” Imai said (translated from Japanese) to World Series and two-time World Baseball Classic winner Daisuke Matsuzaka on the show “Hodo Station” on Monday. “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.”

There are a few factors at play here.

First, why it might matter from a Phillies perspective: The Phillies will enter the 2026 season with more of a rotation need than they’ve had in years past, and the long-term picture is even less certain.

Even if he doesn’t ultimately sign with the Phillies, any obvious Dodgers target not signing with the Dodgers is noteworthy. As it has for the past two years, the road to the World Series might very well go through them next year. Imai could be an impact player at the MLB level. It would be best if he’s not a Dodger. Pretty straightforward.

Second is that Imai didn’t even come close to closing the door on Los Angeles. It was not, at least according to all available translations, a vow that he won’t be a Dodger. It was an acknowledgement that if all else is equal, the competitor in him would rather beat them than join them — while admitting that playing alongside that aforementioned trio would be cool.

But all else may very well not be equal. This isn’t a Sasaki situation: The Dodgers could simply open their pocketbook and wipe the floor with everyone else’s offer. At some point, money talks. It would be hard to be shocked by that scenario coming into fruition.

But there remains a chance it doesn’t, which brings us to the third interesting tidbit to come from Imai’s appearance.

“If there were another Japanese player on the same team, I could just ask them about anything, right?” Imai said, again, of course, translated. “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.”

In that regard, the Phillies’ lack of historical success with Japanese free agents might, in this one case, play to their benefit.

Part of the reason they’ve struggled to become real contenders in that market is because they haven’t had anyone to get the ball rolling. The Phillies have only had two Japanese players, ever: So Taguchi and Tadahito Iguchi, who played a combined 137 games with the team (though both won a World Series ring as members of the 2008 Phillies).

It’s not entirely the fault of the Phillies, who’ve upped their scouting presence in Japan the last few years. There’s an inherent geographical disadvantage compared to west coast teams like the Dodgers, Mariners and Giants. 

But perhaps all of that is working in their favor this time around. And if it does, from an early look at Imai’s personality, it seems he’d endear himself pretty quickly in Philadelphia.