On Monday evening, the Chicago Cubs were informed that they will not be the ultimate destination for Japanese phenom pitcher Roki Sasaki, a league source told The Athletic.
The Cubs were one of multiple teams that were told that Sasaki won’t be signing with them, including the New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers. The Cubs met with Sasaki in Los Angeles in December and made their pitch to bring the talented righty to Chicago. According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays are the finalists for Sasaki.
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Their recent success with Japanese players had some believing the Cubs could be sleepers in the process, though that will ultimately not be the case. While the Dodgers have been viewed as front-runners, the Blue Jays have emerged as an apparent serious contender after The Athletic reported that Sasaki had gone to their city to meet with the team. The Athletic also reported that Sasaki similarly visited with the Padres in San Diego.
The 23-year-old Sasaki’s posting has been hotly anticipated since he was a teenager. Members of the current international amateur free-agent class, which Sasaki will be a part of, are eligible to sign with teams on Wednesday, per MLB rules. In 2024 while with the Chiba Lotte Marines of the NPB, Sasaki had a 2.35 ERA with 129 strikeouts against 32 walks over 111 innings and 18 starts. That was actually considered a down year for the high-upside pitcher who teams believe still has some developing left to do.
Over the winter, the Cubs added Matthew Boyd to a rotation led by Shota Imanaga, Justin Steele and Jameson Taillon. Additionally, Chicago has back-end options, including Javier Assad and the recently signed Colin Rea. Last season, the team’s starting rotation posted a 3.77 ERA, good enough for sixth-best in baseball. Still, team president Jed Hoyer was clear that the team would prioritize additional pitching. Even with the additions of Boyd and Rea, it can’t be assumed that the Cubs are done upgrading the unit.
Even after missing out on Sasaki, the Cubs still see themselves as a strong destination for Japanese talent and hope to keep the pipeline flowing. The signing of Yu Darvish — and his subsequent successful seasons on the field and appreciation of the city and organization — helped lead to the signing of Seiya Suzuki. Imanaga’s seamless transition and breakout 2024 season only solidified the team as a real player in the market.
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Roki Sasaki narrows list of finalists to Dodgers, Padres and Blue Jays: Source
(Photo: Naoya Azuma / Associated Press)
