Roki Sasaki, the latest Japanese phenom the Los Angeles Dodgers hoped to acquire ahead of the 2025 season, will likely remain in Nippon Professional Baseball for another, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today .
This season Sasaki has a 6-3 record with a 2.20 ERA. Despite his numbers, his control has been Sasaki’s ongoing struggle.
His performances haven’t been reflective of the Japanese sensation’s best starts on the mound. Sasaki has a career-low 4.10 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He has retired 82 batters and posted 20 walks in just 69 2/3 innings, yielding 52 hits.
Sasaki’s numbers could be the reason he’s having second thoughts about making the move to the MLB so soon. He may want more time to improve his craft before he leaves the NPB.
Making the jump to stateside baseball is a big deal and making the move too early may prove damaging to Sasaki’s career.
Many speculated that the pitcher would make his arrival to the majors in 2024, but neither Sasaki nor his club revealed the plans for the right-hander.
Given that Sasaki is below the age of 25, he would’ve had to take an atypical route to MLB. The posting process is only for age-eligible players.
Sasaki’s contract would’ve had limitations since he would be considered an international amateur. Clubs would only be able to offer the pitching sensation a rookie contract and a signing bonus.
Had Sasaki come to MLB, he likely would’ve taken the same route Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani took to the majors. Ohtani is the only player to ever receive permission from his NPB club to go to MLB without meeting the requirement of six years of professional experience a player under 25 needs to gain international free agency.
If Sasaki were to take the unprecedented route like Ohtani, he would need permission from the Marines to be posted prematurely.
The news of Sasaki’s change of heart precedes an injury the right-hander sustained earlier this week on the mound. The rising star was hit by a batted ball that connected with his left ankle in his second inning for the Chiba Lotte Marines.
His injury doesn’t appear to be very concerning since he returned later in the matchup to make some practice throws. However, Sasaki didn’t resume pitching for the Marines after getting hit by a ball.
In 2023, the 23-year-old posted a 1.78 ERA and retired 39.1% of batters he faced through 91 innings.
Photo Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
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