It remains unclear if Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki will even be permitted to explore an opportunity to pitch in the majors next season, but that hasn’t stopped baseball analysts from trying to predict what team might sign him.
And, as it turns out, that includes the Diamondbacks.
The Athletic’s Jim Bowden recently connected the Diamondbacks and four other teams — the Dodgers, Mets, Yankees and Red Sox — as possible landing spots for the highly touted Sasaki.
Sasaki, who turns 23 on Nov. 3, possesses overwhelming pure stuff, starting with a fastball that can reach triple digits and a wipeout splitter. In four seasons with the Chiba Lotte Marines, he has a 2.02 ERA with 524 strikeouts in 414 2/3 innings.
For Japanese players to sign with a major league club, they have to be permitted to go through the posting process by their current team. Sasaki reportedly wanted to be posted a year ago, but Chiba Lotte denied the request.
Why? Most likely because of money. Sasaki is under the age of 25, so his signing would be subject to MLB’s international bonus pool limits. Those vary by team but top out around $7.5 million, though clubs can trade small amounts of pool space. Chiba Lotte would then receive a posting fee worth 20% of the signing amount.
However, once Sasaki turns 25, he would be free to go to the highest bidder, with Chiba Lotte getting a similar percentage as the posting fee.
Sasaki is expected to once again request to be posted after the Nippon Professional Baseball season is completed.
The difference in waiting until age 25 can be massive. When two-way star Shohei Ohtani signed with the Angels at 23 in 2017, he received a $2.3 million bonus. But when right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto signed with the Dodgers last winter at age 25, he got $325 million — and provided his former team, the Orix Buffaloes, a $50.6 million windfall.
As such, the sooner Sasaki is permitted to come overseas, the more likely it would be that the Diamondbacks could be a possible landing spot — at least in theory. Many in the industry believe Sasaki is all but certain to sign with the Dodgers, who reportedly scouted all of his starts this season.
The Diamondbacks did devote resources to evaluating Sasaki, as well, including having general manager Mike Hazen and assistant general manager Amiel Sawdaye at one of his outings late in the season, where they watched alongside as many as a dozen other top MLB officials.
A source said the Diamondbacks have roughly $500,000 remaining in this year’s bonus pool. The Dodgers reportedly have more than $2.5 million remaining.
It is possible Sasaki could wait until January to find a new team when next year’s signing period begins. At that point, the Diamondbacks will have their full allotment available — $6.9 million, according to Baseball America. That said, they also likely have handshake agreements with players lined up already, something that is common practice in the industry.
Whether it happens now at age 23 or after he turns 25, Sasaki will need Chiba Lotte to sign off on his posting. He cannot control his free agency until he has accumulated nine years of service time in Japan.
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Publish date : 2024-10-29 08:27:00
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