Rich Get Richer: Dodgers Overwhelming Favorites To Sign Prized Japanese Pitcher

The Los Angeles Dodgers just won the 2024 World Series, have Shohei Ohtani locked up for the rest of his career, and saw Yoshinobu Yamamoto dominate in his first World Series start. They’ve been baseball’s most consistent regular season team for the past decade, and now have two championships to show for it.

They have money, an elite player development system, and one of baseball’s best rosters. And sure enough, it might be getting even better. 

23-year-old Japanese phenom Roki Saski is now expected, per ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, to be posted for major league teams this offseason. 

“With indications pointing to Sasaki joining this year’s class, we’ll include him here as he immediately would be among the most sought-after players available,” McDaniel said. “Given the rules in place for players coming over from Japan before they turn 25 years old, it doesn’t make any financial sense for him to get his club to post him this year because, like Shohei Ohtani, he would be limited to the international bonus pools that are all under $8 million; if he comes after Dec. 15, the pools reset and he could get as much as $7 million or so, but if he comes before he’ll be limited to roughly $2.5 million at most.” 

McDaniel also reported that if he is posted, the Dodgers are “heavily favored” to sign him. The rich get richer.

MIAMI – Roki Sasaki of Team Japan walks off the mound at the end of the first inning against Team Me during the World Baseball Classic Semifinals at loanDepot park on March 20, 2023. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)

Roki Sasaki Could Bring Youth, Elite Talent To The Dodgers

Sasaki has been one of the best pitchers in the Japanese baseball league since his debut, and hit 102 mph repeatedly in the World Baseball Classic in 2023. And like Yamamoto, he has a devastating split finger pitch he uses to get strikeouts.

Sasaki did miss time in the 2024 season with an undisclosed arm injury, and any pitcher who throws that hard is a threat to require surgery at some point in their career. But assuming his health holds out, for now at least, he’d be immediately inserted near the top of an MLB rotation.

Most evaluators put Sasaki in the top-5 of available free agents, some as high as second behind Juan Soto. For the Dodgers, he’d provide a much-needed rotation boost. For 2025, the defending champs will have Yamamoto, Ohtani, returning from his second arm surgery, Tyler Glasnow coming off an arm injury of his own, Clayton Kershaw, who dealt with injuries in 2024, Tony Gonsolin, returning from Tommy John surgery, and Dustin May, who hasn’t pitched in two years due to injury.

Notice anything they have in common? 

The Dodgers’ strategy has been to accumulate as many pitchers as possible and hope for the best. Sasaki, at 23, would hopefully provide some stability, along with his elite talent, for a pitching staff that desperately needs it.