Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki brings Ohtani-level hype to MLB market

DALLAS – Roki Sasaki, the electric Japanese righty just posted by the Chiba-Lotte Marines, is expected to begin a first round of pitch meetings with interested big-league teams next week, agent Joel Wolfe said Tuesday.

Pursuit of the 23-year-old, who because of his age will be subject to the international signing bonus pool rules that make him affordable for all 30 clubs, is expected to be frenzied. Wolfe said at least half the teams in the majors scouted him in Japan this season, adding that he’s already received at least three pitch videos or PowerPoint presentations from clubs, with the process only accelerating from here.

Wolfe’s plan is to begin hosting in-person meetings next week before Sasaki returns home for the holidays later this month.

“And then prior to his returning, we would discuss whether or not he would at that point travel to see some cities, or return to have more in-person meetings,” said Wolfe. “We're going to leave it open ended depending on how the first-round of meetings go, how many meetings he actually has, how many total meetings he plans to have.”

The pursuit will be reminiscent of the fever around Shohei Ohtani when the two-way superstar first came over from Japan ahead of the 2018 season. Like Sasaki, he was also 23 at the time and subject to the international bonus pool limits, which in the 2025 period beginning Jan. 15 ranges from $5,146,200-$7,555,500 per team.

The Toronto Blue Jays, who have for years scouted Sasaki and are sure to seek a meeting, have a bonus pool of $6,261,600 to work with, although teams can also acquire pool space from other clubs, too.

Given that money can’t meaningfully tip the scales, a successful courtship will be decided by other factors. And, just as the case was for Ohtani, what Sasaki really values wasn’t immediately clear.

Wolfe was vague on that front, saying he and his client hadn’t discussed it much as they worked through a contentious process that convinced Chiba-Lotte to post him two years early.

“The best I can say is he has paid attention to how teams have done as far as overall success, both this year and in years past,” said Wolfe. “He does watch a lot of Major League Baseball. He's paid attention to what his WBC teammates have done. He's talked to a lot of foreign players from that have been on his team Chiba-Lotte. He asks a lot of questions about weather, comfortability, about pitching development and just watching what other Japanese players in the major leagues are doing and how they are doing.”

Sasaki posted a 2.35 ERA in 111 innings over 18 outings this past season, striking out 129 batters while walking only 32 and surrendering a mere two home runs. In four Nippon Professional Baseball seasons, he’s given up just 16 home runs in 414.2 innings with 524 strikeouts, dominating with a fastball that sits upper 90s and is complemented by a splitter and slider.

He missed some time this past year with “some shoulder inflammation and shoulder soreness,” while in 2023 “had an oblique injury, but nothing serious,” said Wolfe. And while he may need some easing into a big-league workload, he very much has ace potential.

Had Sasaki waited until he was 25 to come over, he would have been exempt from the signing bonus pool, and industry speculation is that under those circumstances, he might have commanded a contract similar to that of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who last off-season signed a $325-million, 12-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

But Wolfe said Sasaki recognizes that “there are no absolutes in life” and “he does not take anything for granted.”

"It is not an absolute lock, as some people in baseball have assumed, that two years from now he's going to get a Yamamoto contract," Wolfe continued. "Baseball just doesn't work that way. If you look at the epidemic of injuries that pitchers here suffer, they have the same potential issues. He could have Tommy John surgery. He's had two shoulder injuries. He's had oblique injuries. Things may not go the way we want. The other thing is it's always been his dream to come to the major leagues, since he was in high school. He's grown up idolizing players like Yu Darvish and (Masahiro) Tanaka and (Daisuke) Matsuzaka. This is something he has always wanted to do."

While the Dodgers and San Diego Padres have been considered leading landing spots, Wolfe repeatedly cited the toll of what he called unfair treatment from media in Japan and suggested that a small- or middle-market team “might be more beneficial for him as a soft landing coming from Japan given what he's been through.”

Asked what kind of market Toronto is, Wolfe replied, “I would describe them as a larger-middle market.”

Now that Sasaki is officially in play, the Blue Jays and the rest of baseball will have an opportunity to convince Saskai that they are everything he wants and needs.