The Yankees may not have to win the fight for the flashiest Japanese arm on the board to add another intriguing pitcher from overseas.
Shoki Oda, the 18-year-old right-hander from Yokohama High School, remains the headline name in this market. He has drawn interest from the Yankees, Dodgers and other clubs as he weighs his move to the United States. But New York also has another path in front of it, and this one comes with a more developed arm, a college track record and a family tie to professional baseball.
That alternative is Keio University right-hander Kosei Hiroike, who has emerged as a serious signing possibility for the Yankees. Japanese reporting published Nov. 9 identified New York as the most likely landing spot for Hiroike, citing multiple MLB scouts and others familiar with the situation. The reported expectation is a minor league contract.
Hiroike turned 22 on Oct. 27, and his profile gives the Yankees something different from the high school chase surrounding Oda. His fastball has reached 156 kilometers per hour, about 97 mph, and he finished the fall Tokyo Big6 season with a 2.88 ERA and 11.52 strikeouts per nine innings over six appearances. Five of those outings were starts, giving evaluators a recent look at how he handles a rotation role.
That matters because the Yankees are not just shopping for velocity. They are weighing age, competition level, contract structure and how quickly a pitcher can absorb instruction. Hiroike checks several of those boxes in a way that makes him a legitimate alternative if New York decides not to stay fully invested in the crowded race for Oda.
His background adds another layer. Hiroike is the son of Seibu Lions baseball operations chief Koji Hiroike, a former Hiroshima pitcher. He also went through Keio’s school system and has shown a strong interest in biomechanics, studying how the body creates movement as part of his effort to refine his delivery.
The scouting notes on Hiroike point to a forkball and slider to go with the fastball. They also describe a pitcher who can work the ball against hitters from both sides of the plate and who already understands the mechanics side of the craft - something that could fit neatly with the Yankees’ development approach.
There’s also a personal Yankees connection. Hiroike started out with the Hibarigaoka Yankees youth team, and he has identified Gerrit Cole as a favorite player.
The comparison with Oda is close in one obvious way. Hiroike’s top velocity is 156 kph, while Oda has been clocked at 157 kph - a difference of one kilometer per hour, or roughly 0.6 mph.
But the bigger gap is age and experience. Oda is four years younger and comes with the appeal of a high school arm already touching elite velocity.
Hiroike brings the edge of having already faced university hitters and handled starting assignments.
Oda’s recruitment is still very much alive. He was scheduled to meet the Yankees and other MLB clubs in early November, and his market has widened beyond the initial Yankees-Dodgers focus. That keeps New York’s options open, with Hiroike now standing as a credible college-tested fallback - or perhaps more than that.
Hiroike went unselected in October’s NPB draft after making clear he wanted to pursue a career in the United States. A minor league deal would be the next step, and the contract structure could matter if MLB’s labor situation changes, since such an agreement could allow his development to continue during a work stoppage depending on the rules in place.
For now, the Yankees are reported favorites for Hiroike as of Nov. 10, while Oda continues to sort through his choices. New York may end up choosing between the teenage sensation and the college arm with the bloodlines, the velocity and the feel for pitching science.
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