Los Angeles Dodgers: Roki Sasaki Search Now Shrinks To 3 Teams

The ongoing saga surrounding Roki Sasaki’s free agency took a significant turn on Monday with the emergence of concrete news, good news for the Los Angeles Dodgers. LA has been considered the front-runner to land Sasaki for nearly an entire year.

According to reports, Sasaki has narrowed down his list of potential destinations, eliminating four teams with whom he had previously held meetings.

The 23-year-old Japanese pitcher, who must sign with a Major League Baseball club before January 23rd, continues to evaluate his options, with at least four teams remaining in contention.

On Monday, San Francisco Giants general manager Zack Minasian confirmed that his team would not be Sasaki’s destination. This news was quickly followed by reports that both the New York Yankees and the New York Mets had also been eliminated from the bidding process.

Shortly after this report, ESPN’s Jeff Passan added the Chicago Cubs to the list of eliminated teams.

Dodgers Among 4 (or 5) Teams Still In The Mix For Roki Sasaki

Baseball: World Baseball Classic - Semifinal Japan vs Mexico
Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Despite these developments, the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, and Toronto Blue Jays remain in contention.

The Dodgers and Padres have emerged as frontrunners, with both teams reportedly hosting Sasaki for second meetings. The Blue Jays did meet with Sasaki but are seen as a long shot based on their spotty track record with developing pitching talent recently.

“The timeline for Round 2 is going to lead right up until he signs,” his agent Joel Wolfe recently said. “We’re still talking and having Zoom calls. So I don’t have a precise timeline for that, like we did for the meetings. Teams will be notified at some point if there’s going to be additional meetings or travel or something like that. But other than that, I don’t believe there’s going to be any specific timeline.”

Los Angeles Rams Wild Card Playoff Game Preview

MLB: Colorado Rockies at Los Angeles Dodgers
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The emergence of a “mystery team” in the Roki Sasaki sweepstakes adds an intriguing layer of complexity to the ongoing negotiations. The Seattle Mariners, renowned for their strong pitching development program, have been identified as a potential dark horse candidate.

Given that 20 teams expressed interest in Sasaki prior to the initial round of meetings, it is plausible that other teams may have also impressed the young pitcher with their presentations, further intensifying the competition for his signature.

He’s widely considered one of the best pitching prospects in the world and the Dodgers have bought into that. Andrew Friedman, President of Baseball Operations, previously identified Sasaki as a “major priority” for the team this offseason.

Friedman expressed confidence in Sasaki’s potential, stating, “He has talked about his desire to be the best pitcher in the world, and we believe he’s capable of being the best pitcher in the world.”, as he has a career 2.10 ERA with 505 strikeouts across 394.2 innings in his career in Nippon Professional Baseball.

Sasaki has a career 2.10 ERA with 505 strikeouts across 394.2 innings in his career in Nippon Professional Baseball.