The Phillies Are Still In On Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Despite Signing Nola
MIAMI, FLORIDA - MARCH 20: Yoshinobu Yamamoto #18 of Team Japan delivers a pitch against Team Mexico during the fifth inning during the World Baseball Classic Semifinals at loanDepot park on March 20, 2023 in Miami, Florida.
The common consensus coming into the off-season was that the Phillies would land one of the big-name MLB Free Agent Starting Pitchers. They have already accomplished that by resigning Aaron Nola to a 7-year $172 Million deal. Most thought that meant the Phillies were done in the starting pitcher market. Not so fast. Because today Yoshinobu Yamamoto was posted, and the Phillies are still expected to be very invested in landing one of the most exciting pitchers on the market, according to Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
[Source: Alex Coffey]
https://x.com/byalexcoffey/status/1726320217138319845?s=20
Coming into the offseason no one really expected the Phillies to be in on him at all. The Phillies have never really looked into that market. But late last week the word became not only were the Phillies interested, they were one of the most interested teams. Apparently, they had sent more scouts than anyone else.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto has officially been posted, which opens up a 45-day window for teams to put in bids to sign him, which includes a posting fee sent to his team in Japan. The window starts tomorrow at 8 am and ends January 4th. A deal can be agreed to at any time within that window. But if no deal is reached by the end of that window, he returns to his team in Japan.
It would certainly be a significant splash. It would give them a rotation of Zack Wheeler, Nola, Yamamoto, Ranger Suarez, and Taijuan Walker. That would easily be one of the best starting rotations in the league.
Dave Dombrowski is known for being bold. Coming off two straight playoff exits, no one expected him to stand pat. But this would be bolder than anyone expected from him. Alex Coffey did add in her article that the Phillies aren’t expected to be in on any of the other starters. So it is specifically Yoshinobu Yamamoto they are in on, which makes sense given he is 5 years younger than any other pitcher available.
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Every Number The Phillies Have Retired, and 3 They Should
The Phillies have been around for a long time. They played their first season in 1883, making them one of the oldest franchises in the MLB. And they are the oldest team to keep one name in stay in one city. Other teams, like the Braves, are older than the Phillies but were not in Atlanta that whole time. Then you have the Reds, who have played in Cincinnati longer but used to go by different names.
Unfortunately, being around that long has not led to much winning. Apart from a period in the 80, the 2000’s, and now the 2020s, they have mostly been a bad baseball team. They have the most losses in MLB history, and just two World Series in about 140 seasons.
But that does not mean they have not had amazing players. Even when they were perennial losers, they had some true Hall of Fame Level players giving Philadelphians something to enjoy. 32 Phillies have been inducted into the Hall of Fame. They have inducted 47 players managers or broadcasters onto their Wall of Fame. But they, like every pro team, save a special honor for only the best players in team history. Retired numbers.
10 players, 9 of whom played for the Phillies, have their number retired with the team. Including guys who played in 1911, all the way through to someone who played their last MLB game in 2013. Which 10 players were so good they earned that honor? Let’s run through those names. And while we are at it, let’s look at 3 names who should go up on that wall and have their numbers retired soon.
Here are all 10 Numbers The Phillies Have Retired, and 3 More They Should Retire Soon:
Andrew Salciunas, “The Choonis,” has done it all at the station - screening calls, working events as a member of the street team, producing 7 days a week, doing updates, and now hosting his own show. Now with a wife and kid, his life experiences are far different than when he first started, but this “regular guy” knows how to relate to anyone. He writes about the Flyers, Phillies, Sixers, and Eagles.