Roki Sasaki, a 23-year-old pitching phenom out of Japan, has signed with the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, according to an announcement on the player's Instagram page. Sasaki was one of the top free agents on the market this offseason - outside of Juan Soto, who signed with the New York Mets - and there had been intense competition for his signature.
The finalists were believed to be the Dodgers, the Toronto Blue Jays, and the San Diego Padres. Other teams, like the Mets, the Boston Red Sox, and the New York Yankees showed interest in Sasaki but were not among the final teams vying for his services.
Sasaki becomes the third major Japanese baseball star to sign with the Dodgers in the past two seasons. He will now join fellow pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto and two-way player and National League MVP Shohei Ohtani. The addition of Sasaki already adds to the Dodgers ultra-powered starting rotation which includes the arms of Ohtani, Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, and Bobby Miller.
