Yankees, Dodgers, Mets Begin Pursuit of Roki Sasaki

The New York Yankees upgraded their starting rotation in a major way Tuesday, agreeing to terms with free agent pitcher Max Fried to a reported eight-year, $218 million contract.

They might not be done.

More news: Yankees Agree to Terms With Max Fried on $218 Million Contract: Reports

Roki Sasaki was formally posted at 8 a.m. ET Tuesday by his Japanese team, the Chiba Lotte Marines, opening his 45-day negotiating window with major league clubs. Sasaki, 23, could be the most talented pitcher on the market despite having never thrown a pitch in the major leagues.

When he was 20, Sasaki threw a 19-strikeout perfect game for the Marines in 2022. In his next start, he threw eight more perfect innings in a row. In the 2023 World Baseball Classic, his fastball sat 100 mph.

Last season, Sasaki went 10-5 with a 2.35 ERA in 18 starts for Chiba Lotte, with 129 strikeouts in 111 innings.

More news:New Report Provides Huge Update On Pitcher’s Timeline to Arrive in MLB

By virtue of his age and lack of experience in Nippon Professional Baseball, Sasaki is not eligible to sign a major league contract, and the triple-digit contract that would certainly come with it. Instead he is limited to the money in each team’s international amateur bonus spending pool.

Sasaki’s agent, Joel Wolfe, told reporters at the Winter Meetings in Dallas that the amount of money in each team’s bonus pool should not impact his decision.

That effectively means all 30 teams will get involved in the bidding for Sasaki. The New York Yankees, New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers won’t be able to outbid other teams for Sasaki, but all three big-market franchises are expected to get involved in the bidding.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday in Dallas, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said Sasaki is a major offseason priority.

“He is someone that obviously is a major priority for us and we’re going to do whatever we can,” Friedman said, according to Doug McKain of Dodgers Nation, “and know that there are a lot of other teams that are going to do the exact same thing.”

Jon Morosi of MLB Network told McKain on Monday that “the Yankees as well might be in the mix, and other larger market teams that might present an option to Roki for him to develop well and eventually hit that major free agent contract like Shohei (Ohtani).”

Meanwhile, the Mets could emerge as the clear winners of the offseason by signing both outfielder Juan Soto (who agreed to a record-setting 15-year, $765 million contract Sunday) and Sasaki.

“We don’t know what he’s going to decide,” Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said on Mets Hot Stove Tuesday, “and so we have to play through our offseason as though we’re not going to land him.”

Sasaki will not finalize his contract before Jan. 15, when the 2025 international amateur signing period begins. Although some players prefer the spotlight that comes with playing in a large media market, Sasaki could prove to be the exception.

“I think there’s an argument to be made that a small- or mid-market team might be more beneficial to him as a soft landing coming from Japan, given what he’s been through and not having an enjoyable experience with the media (in Japan),” Wolfe said.

For once, baseball’s big-market teams might be at a disadvantage in free agency.

For more MLB news, visit Newsweek Sports.