{"id":18642,"date":"2024-12-17T23:42:45","date_gmt":"2024-12-17T23:42:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=18642"},"modified":"2024-12-17T23:42:45","modified_gmt":"2024-12-17T23:42:45","slug":"report-roki-sasaki-set-to-take-next-step-in-free-agency-process-with-mets-yankees-standing-uncertain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=18642","title":{"rendered":"REPORT: Roki Sasaki set to take next step in free agency process with Mets, Yankees\u2019 standing uncertain"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Other free agent pitchers will get much bigger contracts this offseason, but none come with the intrigue of Japanese right-hander Roki Sasaki.<\/p>\n

The 23-year-old was posted last week and is expected to sign during the early part of next year\u2019s international free agent period, since he was posted Dec. 9 and has to finalize a deal by the end of the 45-day window, which is Jan. 23.<\/p>\n

With in-person meetings expected to begin with prospective teams as soon as this week, there remains considerable uncertainty regarding where Sasaki will end up.<\/p>\n

\"Roki
Roki Sasaki of Japan pitches during their Pool B game against the Czech Republic at the World Baseball Classic at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, on March 11, 2023. AP<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Throughout his lead-up to free agency, the Dodgers were considered the most likely landing spot.<\/p>\n

More recently \u2014 and since his agent Joel Wolfe\u2019s comments last week at the Winter Meetings, in which he said \u201cI think there\u2019s an argument to be made that a small- or midmarket team might be more beneficial for him as a soft landing coming from Japan\u201d \u2014 that thinking has changed.<\/p>\n

The Padres are now seen as a real threat for Sasaki, but that hasn\u2019t stopped the Yankees, Mets \u2014 and of course, the Dodgers \u2014 from making their pitch for a player who figures to be on a path similar to Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who signed a $325 million deal with the Dodgers last offseason.<\/p>\n

Because he\u2019s only 23, Sasaki is limited to signing a contract that does not exceed a team\u2019s MLB-allotted bonus pool, which currently tops out at around $7.5 million.<\/p>\n