Yu The Man!

The Blue Jays reportedly entered a "monster bid" approaching $50 million and won the Yu Darvish sweeps, according to reports. Yu nearly broke Twitter Friday night after George King of the New York Post reported the Jays were the front-runner. If the Nippon Ham Fighters formally accept the offer, Toronto has 30 days to negotiate a major-league contract with Darvish, a 6-foot-5 sensation with a career 1.99 ERA.


"We'd become a 95-game winner overnight," a long-time member of the Blue Jays organization told me today. "We'd be in the playoffs."

It's looking like a sweet day for Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos, who's gone hard after international free agents, winning some (Adeiny Hechavarria) and losing some (Aroldis Chapman). Darvish is considered a more polished pitcher than his Japanese predecessors. My quick scouting report based on these video highlights and discussions from the experts: What stands out is the athletic body and power arm. Throws 93-95-mph with an array of off-speed stuff. Imposing, aggressive. Really mixes the speed of his pitches and sets up hitters with a plan of attack. He's still rather lanky and will add some muscle and sustain velo ... However, let's not mold a plaque for Cooperstown just yet. Remember Dice-K mania and his so-called "gyro-ball" that had everyone so excited? Well, the Red Sox paid $51.1 million on Dice's posting fee and rolled craps. Not sure you could find many Red Sox fans who believe the 100-plus million now spent on Dice-K was financially worth it.