The Legend Of Masahiro Tanaka In 22 Minutes

We’re rapidly approaching the deadline for highly-coveted Japanese pitcher Masahiro Tanaka.

According to YES Network, Tanaka has sorted through the proposals and whittled the number of candidates to two. The Yankees are reportedly one of the remaining teams in the mix after removing Alex Rodriguez’s cash from the books. The other team on the short list, per the YES Network Tweet (seen below), is the Chicago Cubs.

Chicago fans grilled team management and ownership over the weekend at the team’s annual “Cubs Convention.” One of the main points of contention is that the Cubs continue to charge premium prices in exchange for perennial disappointment. The long-term plan appeared to point to a 2015 revival of the squad under Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer if the rising prospects develop as expected. Perhaps the signing of Tanaka would accelerate those plans and breathe some excitement into the Cubs’ faithful.

Cubs fans can whet their collective appetite with this nearly 22-minute video of Tanaka strikeouts.