Japanese pitcher Rori Sasaki could be one of winter’s most sought-after free agents. The star right-hander is expected to post and make himself available for Major League Baseball teams to bid on a contract.
Ahead of all that, the rumor mill has been spinning. Unsurprisingly, the Los Angeles Dodgers have emerged as a potential contender for Sasaki.
Rumors ran rampant about potentially putting the cart before the horse, which the Dodgers and Sasaki had already agreed to. What a world. But that’s not reality, Sasaki’s agent claims.
Sasaki’s agent Joel Wolfe told The Athletic that those rumors were emphatically untrue. Wolfe, a member of the Wasserman Group, a Los Angeles-based sports marketing and talent management company, also considered those rumors “poor sportsmanship” in a strong message to the rest of MLB.
“While a bunch of executives who should know me better and do a lot of business with me insult my integrity by insinuating that I would be a part of some type of nefarious agreement, in reality, this is just poor sportsmanship,” Wolfe told Drellich per The Athletic.
The Dodgers are among the richest MLB teams and among the few that actually spend a lot of money. So, it’s not surprising that their name has been linked to Sasaki. But it seems like that linking is all there is to it.
And to that end, the Dodgers’ international pool money isn’t what some might think it is. Especially considering that, according to MLB commissioner Rob Manred, Sasaki is expected to become available in January, not December.
According to Drellich, the Dodgers will have $5.1 million to spend in that period, which is considered low for the new year.
Los Angeles won their second World Series of the 2000s and their first in a full season since the heralded 1988 season. The Dodgers defeated Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, and the New York Yankees in five games.
LA isn’t satisfied with just one either. With Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, the possibilities in Dodgerland are endless.
About Chris Novak
Chris Novak has been talking and writing about sports ever since he can remember. Previously, Novak wrote for and managed sites in the SB Nation network for nearly a decade from 2013-2022