The New York Yankees are out of the running for free agent pitcher Rori Sasaki. It appears likely that Sasaki isn’t just spurning one New York team either. The Mets aren’t bringing him in either.
After news broke that Sasaki informed the Yankees that they were out of the running, the Mets are also likely to be out for the star Japanese right-hander.
That news emerged on Monday afternoon.
“It’s unlikely the Mets end up landing Roki Sasaki,” Mets reporter Will Sammon said on X.
Several teams have courted Sasaki, but his decision could be looming soon now. Several teams are now out of the running along with the two teams in New York. The Colorado Rockies and the San Francisco Giants are also out on Sasaki.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have been rumored as a potential favorite for Sasaki. That comes a year after the team signed pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto as he left Japan for Major League Baseball. The Dodgers won the World Series over the New York Yankees in five games, thanks to their all-star lineup, including mega-star Shohei Ohtani.
San Diego and Toronto have also reportedly been in the running for Sasaki.
But, as always, you can’t ever count out the Dodgers in these sorts of things. That’s just the way it goes.
For the Mets, they already signed superstar Juan Soto. So New York has had a fantastic offseason on that alone. But will more come their way? And where will Sasaki go?
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