Insider Pushes Back On Cubs’ Reported Tatsuya Imai Interest

Many Chicago Cubs fans were not happy to hear the news that Tatsuya Imai signed a three-year deal with the Houston Astros, which was announced on January 1.

This is because the Cubs were reportedly among the favorites to sign the 27-year-old Japanese hurler, with one reporter saying that it was between them and the New York Yankees. In fact, no insider reports indicated that the Astros were even in play to sign Imai, which shows that sometimes insiders don't always know for sure what's really going on.

What's for sure is that Imai made a lot of sense for Chicago on the surface. They could use another quality starting pitcher on their roster to pair with Cade Horton, and while there are some questions about whether Imai's success in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league could translate to MLB, the fact that he signed for a mere three years and $54 million proved that he would have been well within Chicago's budget.

Even if Imai reached the added incentives in his deal that could bring the total to $63 million, one would have imagined that was well within Jed Hoyer's price range. Therefore, this seems to suggest that something else about Imai made the Cubs pause when pursuing him.

Jed Hoyer | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Insider questions Cubs’ level of interest in Tatsuya Imai

Or perhaps the reports about the Cubs' interest in Imai were inaccurate, and they were never major suitors for him in the first place. This is what FanSided MLB insider Robert Murray seemed to suggest during a January 2 live stream of The Baseball Insiders.

"Honestly, I can say I did not see [Imai to the Astros] coming," Murray said. "I'll give you guys a look into my process here: It was obvious that a signing was coming, but every team that I checked on and checked around, it seemed like they were unlikely.

"The Phillies were unlikely, the Mets were unlikely, I'd heard in the days coming in that the Cubs were unlikely as well," Murray added.

Murray is one of the most well-respected insiders in the sport, which means that his suggestion that the Cubs' interest in Imai dwindled can probably be taken to heart.

Perhaps Chicago ultimately balked at the price it was about to pay to sign him. But since that ended up being relatively cheap, maybe the Cubs' brass wanted to focus their courting effort on a proven MLB pitcher like Framber Valdez, Ranger Suarez, or Zac Gallen.

The Latest Chicago Cubs News

MLB Insider's Alex Bregman Update Raises Red Flag For Cubs

Cubs Have Reportedly ‘Checked On’ $186 Million Star Shortstop

Insider Explains Cubs’ Free Agency Plan After Failed Tatsuya Imai Pursuit

Insider Confirms $160 Million Free Agent Starter Remains On Cubs Radar