Scott Boras' strategic leverage play snatched Tatsuya Imai from the Cubs' grasp, revealing the exact deal-breaking clause.
All offseason, it felt like the Chicago Cubs were the favorites to land Japanese right-hander Tatsuya Imai. Many insiders predicted the Cubs to land him, and there was a real sense that the team was going to sign him.
Unfortunately, the Houston Astros swooped in and offered a better deal for Imai. The Astros signed him to a three-year, $63 million contract with opt-outs included after the 2026 and 2027 seasons.
It was a bit shocking that the Cubs weren’t the ones to agree to that type of contract for Imai. They usually prefer to sign players to cheaper contracts, and Imai signed for much less than what analysts previously thought.
Well, we finally know why a deal between the Cubs and Imai never went down. It all has to do with agent Scott Boras’ tactics.
According to North Side Baseball, the Cubs believed they were set to land Imai before Boras made one final leverage play.
“Cubs thought they had a deal all but complete with Imai, only to have Boras leverage their last offer into one from Houston that included one of the key provisions on which [Jed] Hoyer wouldn't budge: an opt-out after 2026,” Matthew Trueblood wrote.
If this report from Trueblood is true, it appears the main thing that held the Cubs back from acquiring Imai was not including an opt-out after the 2026 season. So, Chicago was definitely in the running for the Japanese star.
Now, it makes sense why Hoyer did not want to include an opt-out after the 2026 season. That gives Imai and Boras some leverage because this deal could essentially turn into a one-year contract. The ball wouldn’t be in Chicago’s court.
Assuming Imai has a great rookie season, there is likely a strong chance that he would opt out of that current deal with the Cubs. That would leave the team in another vulnerable spot since they already have three other starters set to hit free agency.
Jameson Taillon, Matthew Boyd, and Shota Imanaga are all free agents after this upcoming season. So, the Cubs likely wanted to head into next offseason with some continuity at the starting pitcher position.
At the end of the day, though, it is a bit frustrating that the Cubs were that close to landing Imai. All it took was potentially adding an opt-out clause after the 2026 season to get a deal done. Hoyer's unwillingness to do that forced Imai to take Houston’s deal.