The Japanese star pitcher Roki Sasaki has rejected his team’s contract in the NPB, and it is expected that he will sign with an MLB team this winter. According to experts in Japanese baseball, Sasaki is currently the best pitcher in his home country, but it is still unclear whether the Chiba Lotte Marines will place him in the posting system.

According to a report by Kiley McDaniel of ESPN, there are «indications» that Roki Sasaki will be signed during this offseason by an MLB team. It also states that the current champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, are «major favorites» to sign him, where he would join his fellow countrymen: Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

Sasaki would spark a bidding war reminiscent of Shohei Ohtani’s first contract with the Angels, in terms of both MLB-wide interest and financial terms. Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Angels for $2.315 million in the winter of 2017-18.

Earlier this year, Roki Sasaki expressed his strong desire to move to the United States and play in the best baseball league in the world: «I have the desire to play in the Major Leagues in the future. I have been in communication every year. I believe the club understands this as well.»

The Dodgers, whose global reputation has never been as strong as it is now, are seen as favorites to sign him if he is placed in the posting system.

Ismael Hernández

Soy egresado de la Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara desde el año 2012, graduado como Licenciado en Ciencias de la Comunicación. Tras haber sido locutor de radio durante algunos años en la “Perla Tapatía”, regresé a mi ciudad natal, Mazatlán, Sinaloa y fui contratado por Periódico El Debate en el mes de mayo del 2019. Mis primeros meses en El Debate fueron redactando artículos para la vertical: “Mi Bolsillo”, sin embargo, en septiembre del mismo año pasé a formar parte del poderoso lineup de “Al Bat”, donde aún sigo ejerciendo el puesto de periodista web. En “Al Bat”, damos a conocer con veracidad para nuestros lectores lo más relevante del mundo del béisbol, principalmente de la MLB, ligas invernales de México, República Dominicana, Puerto Rico, Venezuela y del continente asiático. Soy aficionado de los Dodgers de Los Ángeles en la Liga Nacional y de los Red Sox de Boston en la Americana. Mi gran sueño es conocer el estadio Fenway Park, recinto histórico de los “Patirrojos”.

Ver más