"Just declared war"; "Cocky guy" - Fans erupt as Japanese ace Tatsuya Imai eyes MLB move with bold vow to dethrone Shohei Ohtani & Yoshinobu Yamamoto

The Los Angeles Dodgers won consecutive World Series titles with Japanese superstars Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto playing a crucial role in their triumph.

With Ohtani and Yamamoto grabbing the spotlight, Japan has emerged as a big destination for MLB teams to recruit fresh faces. One of the Japanese players linked with a big move to the major leagues is NPB ace Tatsuya Imai.

The 27-year-old right-handed pitcher has been dominating the NPB over the last two seasons and has reportedly vowed to dethrone Ohtani and Yamamoto as the best Japanese player when he joins MLB.

Fans reacted to the NPB pitcher's bold claim.

"He just declared war on the two biggest names in baseball and I respect the audacity. 😂 Let's go!" "Lolol cocky guy. We shall see…" "Already adopting the lil bro mentality he will be a great fit for the Giants/Padres." "Knowing just how petty Padres are , they’re probably gonna get em." "Sounds like he has already been told the dodgers are not interested in him lol he’s bitter."

While Shohei Ohtani is in the running for a third consecutive MVP award, Yamamoto was named the World Series MVP after helping the team to the Fall Classic triumph against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Scott Boras compared Tatsuya Imai with Dodgers superstar

Tatsuya Imai is set to be posted on Nov. 19, opening a 45-day window for the Japanese ace to sign with a MLB team. While Imai is an unknown talent for MLB fans, his agent, Scott Boras, drew a similarity with Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

"Certainly, he's done everything Yamamoto's done,” Boras said. “He loves big markets. We go through the list of places he may want to play and, believe me, he is someone who really wants to be on a winning team and compete at the highest level.”

The San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets are the two teams to have reportedly shown the most interest in Imai.

Edited by Chaitanya Prakash