MLB Free Agency: Japanese Pitcher Roki Sasaki Posted, Phillies “Very Interested”

Philadelphia Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski has dreams of Andrew Painter and Japanese ace starter Roki Sasaki as a one-two punch in the starting rotation dancing in his head this holiday season. 

Phillies obviously a longshot for Roki Sasaki but would love to make their presentation if on his short list

“You’re always interested in really good players and we think he’s a premium guy,” Dave Dombrowski said. “We would love to have Sasaki & Painter going for years to come.”

— Corey Seidman (@CSeidmanNBCS) December 11, 2024

Whether the 23-year-old Sasaki wants to pitch in Philadelphia still remains to be seen. 

The latest pitching sensation from the Land of the Rising Son was posted by Nippon Professional Baseball’s Chiba Lotte Marines on Tuesday. Sasaki will be eligible to sign with any Major League Baseball team from now through 5:00 PM/Eastern on January 23, 2025. Like previous Japanese free agents, Sasaki will command a lot of attention but he technically won’t break the bank.

Unlike previous NBP pitching free Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Sasaki is considered an amateur free agent because of his age and will be subject to a minor league contract. His contract will be allotted similar bonus funds to that of a 16-year-old Latin American prospect, according to baseball rules. Like previous NPB free agents, Chiba will still receive a posting fee from the acquiring team that is equivalent to 25% of the signing bonus. 

Back to the Phillies interest in Sasaki. 

When speaking to the media on Tuesday after recently acquired free agent Jordan Romano’s press conference, Dombrowski reiterated the Phillies interest in the two-time NBP All-Star:

“We’re just like everybody else, we’re very interested. My understanding is that they are going to meet themselves first. (Sasaki’s agent) Joel Wolfe said to some of our people. They know everybody is interested. They’ll let some clubs know that they’re still involved in the process. So, we are prepared to make a presentation, our people have been working on it for an extended time. We’re ready to do that but they have to tell us that you’re one of the so many clubs that he’s willing to go to. They’re making their presentation to him to let him know this is the background of these clubs. We’d love to have a presentation for him. We hope we’re in that group, but we don’t know.” 

• Dave Dombrowski on the Phillies interest in free agent pitcher Roki Sasaki

As is usually the case with Japanese free agents, location and proximity to the West Coast has been brought up as a big selling point for any interested team. The belief is Sasaki wants to pitch on the West Coast, but his agent claims that is not the case. 

The club pursued Yamamoto heavily prior to last season before he ultimately went to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The belief among many baseball insiders is the Phillies will be “in play” for Sasaki and shouldn’t be counted out.

“The Philadelphia Phillies, according to a league source, remain another team worth watching in the [Roki Sasaki] sweepstakes. Last winter, team president Dave Dombrowski aggressively pursued Yamamoto in free agency, a signal of the franchise’s concerted efforts to build up a… https://t.co/rq3pwyfiPJ pic.twitter.com/OAFawAv9Y0

— Phillies Tailgate (@PhilsTailgate) November 10, 2024