Tatsuya Imai lives up to Dodgers enemy arc by choosing Astros ... for now

Dodgers fans spent most of the posting window doing the same mental math they always do: elite Japanese arm + LA spotlight = this could happen. But the part that made Tatsuya Imai feel uniquely relevant wasn’t just the talent — it was the edge.

This is the guy whose whole vibe, at least publicly, has been about wanting to beat the Dodgers, not join the machine. So when the dust settled and he didn’t pick LA, it wasn’t a miss. It was a message.

And then he went a step further. Because Imai didn’t simply choose “another contender.” He chose one landing spot that would set Dodgers fans off on contact: Houston.

Tatsuya Imai chooses the Astros and leans into his Dodgers enemy arc

Imai is in agreement on a three-year deal with the Astros worth $54 million guaranteed and up to $63 million with incentives, with opt-outs built in. It’s a contract built for the short-term flex: win now, post numbers, keep the next door open. And suddenly the “Dodgers enemy arc” isn’t a bit — it’s reality with ink on it.

Dodgers fans don’t need the full history lesson on why this feels like a heel turn. You already know what Houston represents in this rivalry-of-the-soul. You already know why this specific uniform hits differently than, say, the Mets or Yankees or Phillies. That’s what makes the choice so clean from a narrative standpoint: the baseball fit is real, and the emotional response is automatic.

And if he opts out of his contract with the Astros after 2026, that gives him the chance to join another Dodgers enemy. Can't rule out the Giants or Padres in that scenario if it escalates.

Imai was one of the most fascinating arms in free agency, coming off a dominant 2025 season in Japan (1.92 ERA, 178 strikeouts in 163 2/3 innings). If the stuff translates the way evaluators think it can — big fastball life, real bat-missing secondaries, starter’s workload — the Dodgers could be staring down a recurring theme: the pitcher who wanted to take swings at the sport’s biggest monster is doing it while wearing colors LA fans already associate with villainy.

That part will linger. The Dodgers don’t “lose” the offseason because Imai didn’t want to play for them. They’re still the Dodgers. The point is the theater. A posted ace spending a month getting linked to the usual destinations, talking like he wants the smoke, and then signing with the team Dodgers fans despise? That’s baseball choosing drama on purpose.

The first time Imai faces the Dodgers won’t feel like a simple matchup. It’s going to feel like a guy trying to live up to his own quote — and Houston handing him the perfect stage to do it.