Roki Sasaki has started meeting with teams even though he won’t be signing with a Major League Baseball club until at least Jan. 15, according to multiple reports.
Just a few days before the Christmas holiday, Sasaki reportedly met with the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, San Francisco Giants, and Chicago Cubs.
Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young has confirmed that team representatives met with Sasaki last week, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
Similarly, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the Giants are also “believed to have met” with Sasaki and his representatives.
San Francisco stands out as a potential destination for Sasaki due to its closer proximity to Japan and its sizable Japanese population compared to cities like New York, Chicago, or Dallas-Fort Worth.
While there hasn’t been any indication from Sasaki or his agent that location is a priority in his decision, Giants general manager Zack Minasian has noted that the team’s geographic advantage could be a factor, according to Maria Guardado of MLB.com.
“Obviously, like probably all the other 29 teams, it would be a dream for us to get this guy,” president of baseball operations Buster Posey said earlier this month. “Just tremendous upside. Not too many arms in the world like his. He’s a tremendous talent. He’s 23 years old. It’s fun to dream on. It’s fun to think about him at Oracle Park and him pitching deep into a game late in the year, the place rocking. We’d be over the moon to add a guy like that.”
Minasian also pointed to Oracle Park’s pitcher-friendly environment as a possible draw. Given Sasaki’s experience in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, where runs are more difficult to score, he might find a similar setting appealing.
On top of that, building strong statistics in such an environment could enhance his value when he eventually reaches free agency in six years.
As for the Rangers, Sasaki’s agent Joel Wolfe touched on several factors that might influence Sasaki’s decision but avoided committing to any specific ones.
One possibility he raised was Sasaki joining a “smaller” market team with less intense media scrutiny.
Wolfe also noted that Sasaki grew up admiring Japanese stars like Yu Darvish, Masahiro Tanaka, and Daisuke Matsuzaka.
The Rangers, who originally signed Darvish, could have an edge here. Key figures from that signing — assistant GM Josh Boyd and Pacific Rim Operations Director Joe Furakawa — are still with the team and have spent years cultivating connections in Japan, positioning the Rangers as a serious player in the chase for Sasaki.
While the Rangers fit the small market criteria, the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers remain the favorites, and it isn’t clear whether Sasaki has met with either team yet
