In a decision that sent shockwaves through the baseball world, Roki Sasaki, the 23-year-old pitching prodigy from Japan, announced on Friday that he will be joining the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. The right-hander, who has dazzled scouts with his electric arsenal since his high school days, selected the Dodgers from a final group that also included the Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres.
The Dodgers’ Global Appeal
For Sasaki, the allure of wearing Dodger blue alongside fellow countrymen Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on a team fresh off a World Series title proved too strong to resist. The Dodgers’ reputation as a premier talent development organization and their deep rotation undoubtedly factored into Sasaki’s choice as well.
A Unique Talent
Sasaki’s awe-inspiring talents were on full display during the 2022 season with the Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Professional Baseball. On April 10th, he etched his name into the record books by hurling a perfect game with an NPB-record 13 consecutive strikeouts. Remarkably, he followed that up with eight more perfect innings in his next start before being pulled.
Within these next handful of years, several prominent evaluators believe, Sasaki could be an annual Cy Young contender.
A Unique Path
As a 23-year-old with less than six seasons in NPB, Sasaki falls under the “minor league contract” provision of MLB’s posting system. This means he will sign a minor league deal, with his earnings and service time accrual operating similarly to players selected via the amateur draft. A traditional free agency payday will have to wait until Sasaki notches six years of MLB service.
The Waiting Game
Sasaki’s prolonged decision process left many international prospects and their MLB suitors in limbo, as the Dodgers, Blue Jays, and Padres needed to reserve bonus pool space for a potential Sasaki windfall. This unorthodox situation bred frustration, particularly in the Dominican Republic where most July 2nd deals are verbally agreed to years in advance.
Worth the Wait?
While Sasaki’s triple-digit fastball, devastating splitter, and wipeout slider give him as high a ceiling as any pitching prospect in recent memory, there are concerns about how the slender hurler will handle a MLB workload. His velocity dipped a bit in 2022 as shoulder fatigue crept in, and his command can be inconsistent.
Still, the Dodgers are betting that Sasaki’s meteoric potential is worth the risk. They will surely handle him with care, but make no mistake – when Roki Sasaki toes the rubber at Chavez Ravine for the first time, all eyes in the baseball universe will be transfixed on the mound, waiting to see if this phenom from the Far East can live up to the extraordinary hype.
