
Some of Major League Baseball’s most exciting players, like Juan Soto, Elly De La Cruz, and Shohei Ohtani, have entered the league through international signings. This year, another potential star, Roki Sasaki, is set to join MLB from Japan. The 23-year-old pitching sensation nearly achieved back-to-back perfect games, a feat unmatched in both MLB and Japanese pro leagues. Sasaki’s fastball has reached speeds up to 102 mph, attracting interest from 20 MLB teams. Seven teams have met with him in person, while 13 others have submitted written proposals to Sasaki and his agent, Joel Wolfe.
Sasaki was officially posted for MLB on December 10 and has 45 days to choose a team, with a deadline of January 23. If he doesn’t sign by then, he’ll continue pitching for the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan’s Pacific League. The MLB international signing period opens Wednesday, giving Sasaki a little over a week to decide.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are considered front-runners due to their West Coast location and the presence of Japanese stars like Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The San Diego Padres, featuring veteran Yu Darvish, are also in the mix. However, a prominent New York sports talk radio host predicts that Sasaki might join the New York Yankees on the East Coast.
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