Yankees to Meet with Japanese Ace Roki Sasaki in California
Yankees Secure In-Person Meeting with Roki Sasaki
The New York Yankees are the first team to secure an in-person meeting with Japanese ace Roki Sasaki, who is preparing to jump from Nippon Professional Baseball to the majors in 2025. General Manager Brian Cashman confirmed the meeting, which will take place in California.
Tremendous Talent
"He’s obviously a tremendous talent," Cashman said. "No doubt about it, he has a chance to be one of the world’s great pitchers. It’d be nice to have Yankee Stadium be his home, but the decision will be up to him. All we can do is share everything and anything about ourselves and what we provide."
Next Steps
Interested parties looking to negotiate with Sasaki, 23, first had to send video pitches. Sasaki and his agent, Joel Wolfe, have now begun alerting the teams that have made it to the next round of his posting. Sasaki’s negotiation window will run until January 23 at 5 p.m. ET, which comes roughly one week after every MLB team’s international bonus pool resets.
Competition for Sasaki’s Services
The Yankees will have an abundance of competition for Sasaki’s services, most notably a pair of west-coast teams in the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres. The Mets are also believed to be in the hunt, but it would not be a surprise if the majority of the league sent a pitch to Sasaki and Wolfe.
Sasaki’s NPB Career
Developing into a superstar with the Cibba Lotte Marines, Sasaki went 29-15 in his NPB career, posting a 2.10 ERA, 505 strikeouts, and a 0.894 WHIP. His fastball can regularly sit at 100 mph while his split-finger has been billed as a devastating putaway pitch.
Conclusion
Nabbing Sasaki would make the Yankees’ starting rotation one of the very best in all of baseball, especially in the American League. They signed Max Fried to put alongside Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon while also boasting the reigning AL Rookie of the Year, Luis Gil.
FAQs
Q: Who is Roki Sasaki?
A: Roki Sasaki is a Japanese professional baseball player who is preparing to jump from Nippon Professional Baseball to the majors in 2025.
Q: What is Sasaki’s NPB career record?
A: Sasaki has a career record of 29-15 with a 2.10 ERA, 505 strikeouts, and a 0.894 WHIP.
Q: What is the next step in the process for Sasaki’s negotiation?
A: Sasaki’s negotiation window will run until January 23 at 5 p.m. ET, and teams must send a video pitch to his agent, Joel Wolfe, to proceed.
