If the Yankees are going to add two-way Japanese superstar Shohei Otani this winter, several dominoes must fall.
The biggest: Otani actually has to make the decision to jump to Major League Baseball now instead of waiting a few more years.
Here's why that hasn't been considered a 100 percent given: By coming over now--at the age of 23--Otani is subject to be treated like any other international free agent. That means a very strict cap on what he can be paid on his first big league deal from suitors like, say, the Yankees, Red Sox or Dodgers.