The New York Yankees are out of the running for star free agent pitcher Rori Sasaki.
The Japanese star’s decision might be coming soon as teams have begun to learn that they’re out of the running for the prized right-hander. It won’t be the Bronx Bombers who bring Sasaki in, as he informed the club Monday that he will not sign with them.
Longtime Yankees insider Jack Curry of the YES Network reported the news on Sasaki and where the Yankees stand.
Keeping it simple, Curry said on X, “The Yankees have been told Sasaki will not be signing with them.”
Los Angeles has been heralded as the potential favorite for Sasaki, who signed Yoshinobu Yamamoto last season on a mega deal. They also, of course, signed Shohei Ohtani to a massive contract. The Dodgers then turned around and won the World Series, defeating the Yankees in five games.
If Sasaki signs with the Dodgers, then they’ll have beaten the Yankees to the punch yet again.
The Yankees weren’t the only ones to learn that they were out on Sasaki. Their crosstown foes, the New York Mets, are likely out on him too. Sasaki has recently held meetings with the National League’s San Diego Padres and New York rival Toronto, who’ve attempted to be big spenders this offseason. But Toronto has missed out thus far on many free agent targets.
Time will soon tell where Sasaki lands. But it’s not the Bronx, and certainly appears it won’t be in New York at all.
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