As we well know,
Theo Epstein is
really good at snapping up key players in unorthodox ways. All we have to do is recall
The Great Thanksgiving Heist of
Curt Schilling in 2003. As reports now surface that two-way phenom
Shohie Ohtani has narrowed down his landing spots to: the Dodgers, Angels, Padres, Giants, Mariners, Rangers and Cubs, the
other six teams are probably looking over their shoulders for Theo. Always a persuasive pitchman, the Cubbies are probably being portrayed by Epstein as "America's Team"—the former
lovable losers turned
perennial contenders. And while Chicago is not quite "small-market", it's smaller and less intimidating than New York or L.A. Plus, Theo can tout his success with Japanese players like
Daisuke Matsuzaka,
Hideki Okajima and
Junichi Tazawa. Also, the Cubs franchise has had several players from Japan over the years:
Koji Uehara,
Munenori Kawasaki and
Kosuke Fukudome. We can just hear Theo's pitch now!
