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New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman was in attendance on Saturday when Orix Buffaloes ace and prospective free agent Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw a no-hitter against the Chiba Lotte Marines, according to SNY. The New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, and Kansas City Royals are also believed to have had scouting personnel at Zozo Marine Stadium, per SNY.

Yamamoto struck out eight batters, walked two, and hit another as part of his second career no-no. It doubled as the 100th in Japanese pro baseball history.

Yamamoto, 25, is expected to be posted for Major League Baseball teams this winter. Once the Buffaloes post Yamamoto, he'll have 30 days to reach an agreement. The Buffaloes will then receive a fee that is contingent upon his contract's total value. Here's a breakdown of that system:

  • Contract worth less than $25 million: 20% of contract value
  • Contract worth $25 million to $50 million: $5 million plus 17.5% of amount over $25 million
  • Contract worth more than $50 million: $9.275 million plus 15% of amount over $50 million

Back in March, CBS Sports ranked Yamamoto as the best non-MLB prospect partaking in the World Baseball Classic. Here's what we wrote at the time:

The success of Shohei Ohtani, Yu Darvish, Masahiro Tanaka, Hiroki Kuroda, and numerous others has proven that NPB pitchers can handle themselves in MLB. Yamamoto would fit right in from a pitch-quality perspective. He has great command of a mid-90s fastball with carry, as well as a swing-and-miss splitter and a high-spin curveball. He would have to prove that his stuff -- especially his splitter -- plays the same with the baseball stateside, but again, there's enough precedent here to be optimistic about his chances. The other concern about him is his size, as he's listed at 5-foot-10 with a slight frame. Teams appear to be more favorable to shorter pitchers these days, however, thanks to the increased popularity of the vertical approach angle concept and the decreased expectations in starter workload. Yamamoto will likely be viewed as a No. 2 starter if and when he comes over. 

Yamamoto entered Saturday having compiled a 1.28 ERA and a 6.26 strikeout-to-walk ratio over his first 20 starts this season. He figures to receive a contract worth more than the five-year, $75 million pact the Mets gave last winter to Kodai Senga.