With MLB free agency well underway, it is time for teams to step it up a notch in their sales pitches. That could require management to get creative, or bring in a friendly face to close the deal. There are plenty of suitors pushing hard for young ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but the Los Angeles Dodgers could have the biggest trump card of all.

His name is Shohei Ohtani. “The New York Yankees continue to be the favorite to land Japanese pitching star Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but Yamamoto was impressed by the Dodgers’ presentation last week, which included Ohtani,” USA TODAY's Bob Nightengale reported on Monday. “Yamamoto, friends say, has long admired the Dodgers.”

LA is quickly taking full advantage of Ohtani's global allure, which is costing them a total of $700 million, in the hopes that he can help persuade Yamamoto to join this superstar-stuffed roster. There are multiple teams willing to dole out the estimated $300 million-plus it will take to sign him, so the other aspects of their spiel could be instrumental in winning these sweepstakes.

It's a tense race for Yoshinobu Yamamoto

The Yankees and New York Mets can sell the 25-year-old righty on what it means to succeed in New York, the Boston Red Sox can market him as the co-face of the franchise alongside Rafael Devers and the San Francisco Giants offer a proud pitching tradition along with the West Coast.

The Dodgers contain most of these factors as well, in addition to a championship-caliber roster, and now have Shohei Ohtani on their side. Though, Nightengale speculates if that last one could potentially make the historic franchise less appealing to Yamamoto.

“It’ll be fascinating to see if Ohtani’s presence is a benefit to the Dodgers or detriment considering that Ohtani will be the face of the franchise,” he writes. Yamamoto's motivations are not entirely clear, but he clearly has LA on his radar.