DALLAS — If there’s one factor the Dodgers took away from 2024, it is that there isn’t any such factor as an excessive amount of beginning pitching depth.
Technically, they’d simply sufficient arms at their disposal to get via the season with a World Sequence title to point out for it. However the scenario was removed from snug, as Los Angeles’ rotation was all the way down to solely three conventional beginning pitchers within the postseason, pressured to make use of bullpen video games to bridge the hole.
“I’ll by no means say once more that I be ok with the depth,” president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman mentioned Tuesday on the Winter Conferences, “so the reply’s now all the time, I really feel horrible in regards to the depth.”
Thought of probably the most proficient younger pitchers on this planet, Sasaki recorded a 2.02 ERA with 524 strikeouts and 91 walks in 414 2/3 innings throughout 4 seasons with the Marines. He flashed his tantalizing stuff on the worldwide stage within the 2023 World Baseball Traditional, when he received gold with Samurai Japan.
“He’s somebody that’s clearly a serious precedence for us,” Friedman mentioned, “and we’re going to do no matter we are able to, and know that there are numerous different groups which might be going to do the very same factor.”
Not like when the Dodgers gave out essentially the most assured {dollars} to a pitcher with Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s 12-year, $325 million contract final December, the taking part in subject for groups bidding for Sasaki’s companies is rather more stage. As a result of Sasaki is youthful than 25 years outdated, he qualifies as a global newbie free agent below the Collective Bargaining Settlement, which means he is topic to worldwide bonus pool cash restrictions and comes with six years of membership management.
Somewhat than wait two years to probably get a bigger contract, Sasaki is motivated to behave now with a view to sooner understand his dream of pitching within the large leagues.
“It’s not an absolute lock, as some folks in baseball have assumed, that two years from now he will get a Yamamoto contract,” mentioned Wolfe. “Baseball simply does not work that approach. In the event you have a look at the epidemic of accidents that pitchers right here undergo, they’ve the identical potential points. He may have Tommy John surgical procedure; he is had two shoulder accidents, he is had indirect accidents. Issues might not go the way in which they need.
“The opposite factor is, it is all the time been his dream to come back to the Main Leagues since he was in highschool. He is grown up idolizing gamers like Yu Darvish and [Masahiro] Tanaka and [Daisuke] Matsuzaka. That is one thing he all the time needed to do, and when he went to the WBC and he was round a few of these Main League gamers, it actually rubbed off on him that he grew to become positive that that is what I wish to do as quickly as attainable.”
Whereas the Dodgers are seen as probably the most probably locations for Sasaki, there are a few components that aren’t of their favor. Los Angeles is working from the smallest worldwide bonus pool for the 2025 interval, which Friedman is just not overly involved about. Wolfe additionally mentioned that signing with a small- to mid-market workforce could also be useful for Sasaki, who has not had an amazing expertise with the media in Japan due partially to his being vocal about desirous to be posted for Main League golf equipment.
The Dodgers pursued Shohei Ohtani in 2017 when he was below the identical restrictions. Ohtani selected the Angels then, however as a result of the posting course of is completely different for each particular person, they will not take a lot away from that have apart from tips on how to finest signify the town and their group.
Whereas he mentioned the group has scouted Sasaki “quite a bit,” Friedman has solely had the possibility to observe him in particular person as soon as. However, that was sufficient to depart an impression.
“He is extremely proficient,” Friedman mentioned. “Actually bodily. … He has talked about his need to be one of the best pitcher on this planet, and we imagine that he’s able to being one of the best pitcher on this planet.”
