According to Japanese report, five teams have made offers to right-hander Masahiro Tanaka

MLB Trade Rumors’ Aaron Steen provides the translation of this report from Japanese news service Nikkan Sports:

Clubs angling to sign Masahiro Tanaka made formal offers by Jan. 16, Nikkan Sports reports (Japanese link). The list of teams includes the Yankees, Dodgers, Diamondbacks, White Sox and Cubs, with nearly all clubs putting together offers worth more than $100MM over six years.

Noticeably absent from that list are the Angels, who could really use another front-line starter and were thought to be a potential Tanaka suitor but apparently don’t have room in the budget to make such a massive financial commitment.

Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reported Saturday morning that the Cubs are the “lead team” to sign the 25-year-old Tanaka, but this bidding process has been shrouded in mystery and there probably won’t be much factual reporting on the exact offers until after the Japanese right-hander settles with a team.

For what it’s worth, Nikkan Sports pegs the D’Backs’ proposal at six years and nearly $120 million.

Tanaka went 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA last season for the NPB’s Rakuten Golden Eagles.

His signing deadline is January 24 at 5:00 p.m. ET. That’s next Friday evening.

Follow @drewsilv