Its involvement in last week's $1.32-billion purchase of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment has seemingly done little to dampen Rogers Communications's affection for its first sports love – the Toronto Blue Jays – according to a report out of New York Thursday night.
The New York Post is reporting that the Blue Jays have outbid both the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers and are the favourites to land the negotiating rights to Japanese right-hander Yu Darvish. The Post also reported that the Blue Jays bid between $40-million and $50-million (U.S.) under orders from team owner Rogers.
Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos did not respond to a request for clarification.
The Chicago Cubs are also believed to have submitted a bid, but the exact amount is unknown.
Darvish's team, the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, now has until Tuesday at 5 p.m. EST to accept the highest bid, with the winning club getting an exclusive 30-day window to negotiate a deal with the 25-year-old.
The 6-foot-5 Darvish, who has a 93-38 record with a 1.99 earned-run average in seven years in the Japanese league, is believed to be looking for a five-year, $75-million (U.S.) deal.