The New York Yankees are already preparing to go big-name hunting in the international free agent market next offseason, a team insider reports. After losing out on the last three big-name Japanese players, however, the Yankees need a better recruiting approach to land Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami next year. YES Network broadcaster Michael Kay said the Yankees have to go back to the drawing board to figure out how to get top free agents like Murakami to want to come to the Bronx.

“You’ve got to come up with another creative way to make yourself more attractive,” Kay said on Tuesday’s ESPN show. “You just do. (Yoshinobu) Yamamoto turned you down (for the Los Angeles Dodgers). “Now, (Roki) Sasaki turned you down. “Now, the slugging first baseman Murakami is going to be a free agent at the end of this year. I know the Yankees would love to have him. That’s why they don’t want to sign a long-term deal for a first baseman. Are they going to be able to get him, or is he going to end up on the West Coast?”

The Yankees spent years recruiting Roki Sasaki only to be told this week that they are not even a top-three finalist. They also tried to sign Shohei Ohtani originally in 2017 and again last season. They also missed out on Yohinobu Yamamoto. Murakami, who will turn 25 next month, hit 56 homers in 2022, breaking Sadaharu Oh’s 1964 record. He has 224 homers and has slashed .272/.395/.543 over seven seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball. He hit a walk-off two-run double in the semifinal against Mexico and a home run against Team USA in the final at the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

Kay said that Murakami is one reason the Yankees signed 37-year-old Paul Goldschmidt to a one-year deal instead of looking at Pete Alonso or Christian Walker.