Bleacher Report | Adam Wells: The Yankees have been linked to a number of Japanese stars in recent weeks as they attempt to reestablish a foothold in the Japanese market that the Dodgers have dominated of late. They reportedly have a meeting planned with 18-year-old starting pitcher Shoki Oda, who broke out during the 2026 Koshien National High School Baseball Championship of Japan. The young ace’s fastball has been recorded as high as 98 mph, attracting the attention of as many as a dozen MLB teams.
Oda announced that he plans to forgo pitching in NPB and wishes to declare himself for the international free agent signing period that will open on January 15th.*
*This will likely happen regardless of the lockout, like during theearly 2022 dispute. These agreements are with players who are not about to be added to the MLB 40-man roster and the new minor leaguers would join a different union. That’s why Triple-A, Double-A, etc. Opening Day 2027 will not be pushed back by the MLB lockout.
Oda would follow a similar path to Roki Sasaki, who joined the Dodgers on a $6.5 million signing bonus in 2025. By not signing for NPB and going through their posting system after a certain amount of years, Oda would be treated as an international free agent, capping the amount he could sign for and giving the signing team six years of team control, as opposed to someone like Teruaki Sato, who is being posted by his NPB team and can therefor sign a lucrative multi-year deal.
MLB.com | Benjamin Hill: Earlier in the offseason, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders announced that they would undergo a rebranding ahead of the 2027 season, and now we know the new name of the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate. They will now be known as the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Highlanders — partially a nod to the inaugural name of the Yankees’ big-league franchise.
The Yankees were known as the Highlanders from their inception in 1903 until they became the Yankees in 1913. The change comes as the team enters its 20th season as the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate, and is the fourth name in their history following Red Barons, Yankees, and RailRiders. They had been the RailRiders since moving into the highly-renovated PNC Field in 2013.
MLB Trade Rumors | Steve Adams: While not strictly Yankees related, it is possible one of their trade targets has come off the board. Earlier in 2026, the Yankees were rumored to have interest in Nationals center fielder Jacob Young, but he has now signed a four-year, $23 million extension with a fifth year option with Washington. After several seasons of well below average offensive production, Young improved to slash .252/.318/.390 with 10 home runs, 50 RBIs, a 95 wRC+, and 18 steals in 22 attempts. His real calling card is his center field defense, where he has accrued the second-most Statcast Outs Above Average (+46) of any qualified outfielder over the last three seasons, trailing only presumptive NL Cy Young Pete Crow-Armstrong.
Yahoo! Sports | TJ French: Another possible outfield depth piece is no longer an option. Jarred Kelenic elected free agency after joining the organization on a minor-league deal at the end of August following his DFA from the Braves. The Yankees never selected his contract to the majors, and he appeared in 19 games at Triple-A, posting a 43 wRC+ with two home runs and 10 RBIs in 92 plate appearances. The sixth overall pick by the Mets in the 2018 MLB Draft, Kelenic was one of the centerpieces in the 2018 trade with Seattle for Edwin Díaz and Robinson Canó. His big league career never really got on track after that point, and in six big league seasons playing for the Mariners, Braves, White Sox, and Rangers, Kelenic batted .211/.283/.371 with 50 home runs, 162 RBIs, an 84 wRC+, and 0.8 fWAR across 1,571 plate appearances.
