Tag: Roki Sasaki

Roki Sasaki to the Dodgers? 4 reasons why they’re the favorite to sign the Japanese phenom

Why the Dodgers are the favorites to sign Roki Sasaki.

Roki Sasaki just made the already-intriguing 2024 MLB offseason even more fascinating.

The Japanese star pitcher will be posted this year, which means the Chiba Lotte Marines hurler who wowed us all with Japan during the 2023 World Baseball Classic will be much pursued by MLB teams.

But the rumors are that there’s one obvious choice for his services. That team? The Los Angeles Dodgers.

It honestly makes too much sense. And while we’re at the very beginning of the process, it’s a good time to go over why the recent World Series champions are the favorites to sign yet another big name:

1. The Dodgers have been scouting Roki Sasaki for years

That’s per the Los Angeles Times. If Sasaki wants to know which teams have interest and perhaps which ones already have a relationship with his reps, the Dodgers have been there.

2. His Team Japan teammates Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto are Dodgers

It’s probably comforting to have those two as teammates, plus they can tell Sasaki how awesome the organization is.

3. The Dodgers have the most money left in their bonus pool this year

Hmmm.

4. If the Dodgers have a six-man rotation, that’d be nice for a pitcher used to throwing once a week

Also hmm.

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Why Roki Sasaki won’t get a massive contract from MLB teams after Japanese phenom got posted

This won’t cost teams as much as other Japanese free agents. Here’s why.

WHOA. We have a big name hitting the MLB free agent market that is a bit unexpected.

Roki Sasaki, the Chiba Lotte Marines pitcher who turned heads during the World Baseball Classic in 2023 with his unreal abilities with his native Japan, will be posted, per the Marines. That means a team will pay the Japanese franchise money for the right to sign Sasaki — like the Dodgers did with Yoshinobu Yamamoto — and also pay Sasaki.

But he’s not going to get the massive contract Yamamoto got. Why is that?

Let Yahoo’s Jack Baer explain: “Because he is younger than 25 years old, Sasaki will not be able to negotiate a high-price MLB contract like his countryman Yoshinobu Yamamoto did to the tune of $325 million last offseason.”

Here’s more:

Instead, Sasaki will only be able to negotiate a signing bonus out of MLB teams’ international bonus pools, which topped out at a little over $7 million this year. After signing, his status will be similar to any other prospect, going through six years of pre-arbitration and arbitration salaries before he can reach free agency. It’s the same process Shohei Ohtani went through when he came over to MLB before the 2018 season, and Sasaki can only hope it ends with his own nine-figure payday.

There you have it.

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Japan phenom Roki Sasaki and his 102 mph fastball had MLB fans begging their teams to sign him

That bidding war is going to be WILD.

Monday night’s World Baseball Classic semifinal between Japan and Mexico was one of the more exciting games of the entire tournament. But from the very beginning, MLB fans were tuning in to watch one player (and no, it wasn’t Shohei Ohtani).

Japan pitching phenom Roki Sasaki made his first start on U.S. soil in Japan’s eventual 6-5 win, and the 21-year-old didn’t disappoint.

Sasaki sparked global attention last year when he threw the first NPB perfect game since 1994 and threw an additional eight perfect innings the following start before getting pulled due to pitch count. He boasts a fastball that tops out at 103 mph and an already-elite splitter.

Monday was the first time many MLB fans had a chance to see Sasaki pitch against top competition, and it didn’t take long for their jaws to collectively drop. He started the game with a strikeout of Randy Arozarena, blowing a 102 mph fastball right by him.

Nearly every fastball he threw was at least 100 mph. He wasn’t messing around.

Of course, the night wasn’t perfect for Sasaki. His one mistake — a splitter that floated over the heart of the plate — ended up being a three-run home run for Brewers infielder Luis Urias.

But this was still a 21-year-old with absolutely elite stuff on the mound. Sasaki likely won’t arrive to MLB until he is 25 (so after the 2026 season), but there is a chance that he follows Ohtani’s lead and asks to go through the posting process early.

If that happens, he’ll have no shortage of suitors. MLB fans were already clamoring for their teams to get in on the Sasaki sweepstakes.

Japan’s Roki Sasaki might be the best pitcher in the world. But when will he arrive in MLB?

It could be a long time.

If you were to ask the average MLB fan to name the best pitcher in baseball, odds are you’ll hear names like Jacob deGrom, Shohei Ohtani, Sandy Alcantara and Justin Verlander. But the correct answer may very well be a pitcher who doesn’t even play in Major League Baseball.

Japan’s Roki Sasaki is a 21-year-old phenom who plays for the Chiba Lotte Marines of the Nippon Professional Baseball. And on Monday, he will make his first start on U.S. soil — in a soldout loanDepot Park — when he takes on Mexico in the World Baseball Classic semifinal.

While this will be his first appearance in a big-league stadium, it almost definitely won’t be his last. His arrival to Major League Baseball is inevitable, but the wait may be longer than most big-league fans and teams would prefer.

Japan pitching phenom Roki Sasaki showed amazing sportsmanship after hitting player with 101 mph pitch

There’s sportsmanship and then there’s THIS.

In a few years, baseball fans everywhere are going to know the name Roki Sasaki. The 21-year-old pitching phenom from Japan wowed the baseball world last season when he nearly threw two consecutive perfect games in Japan’s NPB.

It turns out that his sportsmanship is also worth the big-league hype.

During Japan’s Pool B game against the Czech Republic at the World Baseball Classic, Sasaki hit the Czech Republic’s William Escala around the knee with a 101 mph fastball. Escala was understandably in some pain, but he remained in the game. That’s when we saw some amazing sportsmanship from Sasaki. On the field, Sasaki removed his cap and gestured to Escala to apologize.

And after the game, Sasaki made an effort to meet up with Escala and offer an extended apology, which included two giant gift bags.

While Sasaki has a bright big-league career ahead of him, the Czech team was comprised of mostly amateurs who work day jobs in the Czech Republic. They were huge underdogs in the World Baseball Classic, and Japan obviously didn’t want to see any of them get hurt. Sasaki knew that, and Escala (one of the few Czech players with even college baseball experience) clearly appreciated the gesture.

Fans also loved seeing that respect between the two teams.

El fenómeno japonés Roki asombró al número del beisbol tras casi pichar su segundo juego perfecto al hilo

Probablemente los fans de la MLB deberían empezar a acostumbrarse a escuchar el nombre Roki Sasaki, porque cada vez que sale al campo se ve más y más como la futura gran estrella de las grandes ligas nacida en Japón. La semana pasada, Sasaki, de 20 …

Probablemente los fans de la MLB deberían empezar a acostumbrarse a escuchar el nombre Roki Sasaki, porque cada vez que sale al campo se ve más y más como la futura gran estrella de las grandes ligas nacida en Japón.

La semana pasada, Sasaki, de 20 años, lanzó el primer juego perfecto en 28 años de la NPB, cuando aniquiló a los Orix Buffaloes con 19 ponches. Sasaki estuvo a punto de repetir es esfuerzo histórico con OTRO juego perfecto.

Durante el partido del domingo de los Chiba Lotte Marines contra los Nippon-Ham Fighters, Sasaki tuvo ocho entradas perfectas con 14 ponches antes de que lo sacaran del juego después de 102 lanzamientos. Los Marines terminaron perdiendo 1-0, en la doceava entrada, que tuvo que haber sido uno de los juegos sin decisión más rudos que le puede pasar a cualquier pitcher.

En el beisbol profesional, cuando llevas lanzando 17 entradas perfectas consecutivas, debes tener un buen repertorio de lanzamientos bajo la manga. Bueno, pues Sasaki no nos decepcionó. El jugador de 20 años presume de una bola rápida de 101 mph para mezclarla con splitters de 91 mph de movimiento intenso. Vean esto:

Traducción: Roki Sasaki, splitters imposibles de batear.
8 entradas perfectas (con 14 Ks), lo sacaron con un PG intacto… después de lanzar un juego perfecto (PG) con 19 ponches en su última aparición. Qué locura.

 

Y algunos de los mejores momentos de su última salida al campo:

Traducción: La semana pasada: Roki Sasaki lanzó un juego perfecto con 19 Ks en una victoria 1-0 para los Chiba Lotte Marines en Japón.
Hoy: Sasaki lanzó otras 8 entradas perfectas con 14 Ks antes de que lo sacaran con 102 lanzamientos en 0-0.
Tiene 17 entradas PERFECTAS consecutivas…

 

Su último lanzamiento de la tarde tuvo una lectura de 163 km/h cuya conversión es de 201 mph.

Traducción: Sacaron a Roki Sasaki después de 8 entradas perfectas. Entra Naoya Masuda, la temporada pasada tuvo un ERA de 2.24 en 64 entradas. Sasaki retiró a 52 bateadores al hilo y contando, veremos qué tan lejos lleva esa racha la semana que entra. Aquí está el último ponche de Sasaki de ese día.

 

Retiró a 52 bateadores al hilo, y una vez más, con su repertorio de lanzamientos es fácil ver por qué. Cuando esté listo para irrumpir en las grandes ligas, la guerra de pujas por sus servicios será histórica. No es de extrañarse que los fans de la MLB estaban asombrados.

Aquí les dejamos el video:

Traducción: El mejor prospecto de picheo que hemos visto. Es inhumano.

 

Traducción: Esto es absurdo.

 

Traducción: ¿Es la próxima súper estrella?

 

Lo que sí es seguro, es que un equipo será extremadamente afortunado de tenerlo.

 

Artículo traducido por Ana Lucía Toledo

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Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki stunned the baseball world after pitching almost a second straight perfect game

MLB teams should start lining up now.

Major League Baseball fans should probably get used to hearing the name Roki Sasaki because with every outing, he’s looking more and more like the next big-league star out of Japan.

Last week, the 20-year-old Sasaki pitched the first perfect game in the NPB in 28 years when he shut down the Orix Buffaloes with 19 strikeouts. Sasaki nearly followed up the historic effort with ANOTHER perfect game.

During Sunday’s Chiba Lotte Marines game against the Nippon-Ham Fighters, Sasaki went eight perfect innings with 14 strikeouts before he was pulled at 102 pitches. The Marines ended up losing, 1-0, in the 12th inning, which had to be one of the tougher no decisions any pitcher could take.

But still, if you’re throwing 17 consecutive perfect innings in professional baseball, you have to have some filthy pitches to work with. Well, Sasaki doesn’t disappoint there. The 20-year-old boasts a 101 mph fastball to go along with a 91 mph splitters with intense movement. Just check it out:

And some more highlights from his latest outing:

His final pitch of the afternoon was clocked at 163 kph, which comes in at, oh, 101 mph. That’s cheat code stuff right there.

He’s retired 52 straight batters, and again, it’s easy to see why with his pitching repertoire. The bidding war for his services could be historic when he’s ready to break into the big leagues. No wonder MLB fans were in awe.