A world-class pitcher reached the cusp of free agency Saturday with the announcement that Roki Sasaki will be made available by his team in Japan., who scouted Sasaki this season, according to two sources.In a statement, the Chiba Lotte Marines stated that they intend to post Sasaki to Major League Baseball, acceding to the 23-year-old righty’s wishes. Armed with a 100-mph fastball and nicknamed the “Monster of the Reiwa Era,” Sasaki has a 2.
The Phillies were allotted $4.6 million for their 2024 international bonus pool. The amount is slated to rise to $6.26 million in 2025. The Phillies are among five MLB teams that have never signed a player directly from NPB, a shutout streak that continued last year with Yamamoto even though they The Phillies are far behind other teams in penetrating the Japanese market. The Yankees, for instance, signed pitcher Hideki Irabu in the late ‘90s and subsequently landed Hideki Matsui, Masahiro Tanaka, and others. The Dodgers’ lineage of Japanese stars runs from Hideo Nomo through Ohtani and Yamamoto. The Mets, Red Sox, and Cubs have long histories of signing prized players from Japan.