Philly Leader

Roki Sasaki, a prominent right-handed pitcher from Japan's Chiba Lotte Marines, is attracting significant interest from Major League Baseball teams following his recent posting. His agent, Joel Wolfe, indicated that Sasaki is meeting with potential teams this week, and speculation is rife about which team will secure his services.

An executive expressed the widespread interest in Sasaki by stating, “Why wouldn’t everyone be trying?” The signing process for Sasaki will occur between January 15 and January 23, aligning with the international signing period.

The rules of the international signing period create a level playing field for teams vying for Sasaki. The maximum bonus any team can offer him is slightly over $7.5 million. However, Wolfe noted that financial incentives would not be the sole factor in Sasaki's decision-making process. He hinted at Sasaki's possible preference for smaller or mid-market teams, which could potentially broaden the pool of interested clubs.

In a survey conducted by MLB Pipeline among MLB executives regarding their predictions on who might sign Sasaki, two teams emerged as favorites: the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres. The Dodgers are known for investing heavily in elite talent and have a strong track record with pitchers like Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on their roster. Meanwhile, the Padres could appeal to Sasaki due to their mid-market status and connections such as Yu Darvish and Hideo Nomo within their organization.

Other contenders include the Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants. The Rangers have previous success with Japanese players like Yu Darvish and Koji Uehara. Although the Giants lack extensive history with Japanese players, they see adding Sasaki as an opportunity to enhance their rotation significantly.

The Seattle Mariners are also considered a "dark horse" candidate due to their smaller market size and competitive roster. Ichiro Suzuki’s presence could serve as an influential factor in persuading Sasaki to join them.

Despite comments about smaller markets being preferable, larger market teams like the New York Yankees and Mets remain in contention due to their successful histories with Japanese players. Additionally, other clubs such as the Boston Red Sox are making serious efforts to attract Sasaki by highlighting past successes of Japanese pitchers in Boston.

While some believe that underdog teams like the Philadelphia Phillies or Toronto Blue Jays might struggle to compete for Sasaki’s signature due to less postseason success or pitching development issues, surprises similar to Shohei Ohtani's unexpected signing with the Angels in 2017 cannot be ruled out entirely.