The San Francisco Giants are looking to make an upgrade to their starting pitching staff, with Justin Verlander leaving in free agency, and the lack of depth proving to be an issue.
Logan Webb and Robbie Ray, along with Landen Roupp, aren't enough in a rotation. Adding a starter this free agency cycle is a must, and for MLB.com's Mark Feinsand, there's one pitcher who would be a "perfect" fit.
That player is Japanese ace Tatsuya Imai. Part of why Iami would be a great pickup for the Giants is that he doesn't want to join the Los Angeles Dodgers and fellow Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani, Roki Sasaki, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Instead, he wants to beat them.
Giants linked to Tatsuya Imai as 'perfect' free agent target
"San Francisco has taken its shot at Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Roki Sasaki over the past few years, only to watch all three sign with the rival Dodgers." Feinsand writes. "Imai, one of Japan's top pitchers, recently said he would 'rather take them down' than sign with the Dodgers."
Imai wants to beat the Dodgers, rather than play alongside them. One of the best ways to consistently beat the Dodgers would be playing for an NL West division rival. And the Giants might be the best contender outside of the Dodgers in the West.
The San Diego Padres are potentially heading towards a sell-off, while the Colorado Rockies and the Arizona Diamondbacks aren't contenders at the moment.
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San Francisco has a strong offense and rotation in place to welcome Imai and instantly become a top contender in the National League. While they'll still have to go through the Dodgers, Imai would be a huge help for the Giants.
In 2025, Imai started 24 games in the NPB, putting up a 1.92 ERA with 178 strikeouts and just allowing six home runs in 163.2 innings pitched.
Adding Imai won't come cheap, but it would be the perfect move for the Giants to make to not only contend with the Dodgers in the NL West, but also round out a strong rotation with Webb, Ray, and Imai.
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