Sooner or later, the Los Angeles Dodgers will likely fill its starting rotation with Japanese pitchers. LA Dodgers with Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 26, are linking up with other Japanese pitchers.
The Dodgers is considered the most likely destination for “165km/h monster pitcher” Rocky Sasaki (23), who has emerged as the best seller of the Stove League after announcing his bid for the Major League Baseball (MLB) after the end of this season. President Andrew Friedman has already shown active interest in the team, visiting Japan to see Sasaki’s pitching during the season. Since Otani and Yamamoto are the teams that Japanese players have already settled in, the environment is much easier for Sasaki to adapt to than other teams, another factor that can give him an edge in the recruitment competition.
John Heyman, a columnist for the U.S. media “New York Post,” said on the 17th (Korean time), “I still believe San Diego is at the center of the competition to recruit Sasaki, but it is known that the San Diego club is unlikely to recruit the Japanese star (Sasaki),” adding, “Another insider said the Dodgers have a 98% chance of recruiting Sasaki and San Diego has a 2% chance.”
Sasaki is the best “monster pitcher” in Japanese baseball that MLB teams are paying attention to. After joining Chiba Lotte as the top draft pick in 2019, he only appeared in the first division in 2021 under thorough management by the team. In 2021, the first year of his debut in the first division, Sasaki showed potential by playing 11 games (63 ⅓ innings) with 3 wins, 2 losses and an ERA of 2.27 and exploding his potential with 9 wins, 4 losses and an ERA of 2.02 in 20 games in 2022. For the first time, he played more than 100 innings (129 ⅓ innings) and recorded 173 strikeouts. On April 10 of that year, he became the youngest NPB player to play a perfect game against the Orix Buffaloes.
Sasaki participated in the World Baseball Classic in March last year as a member of the Japanese national baseball team and made a name for himself on the world stage. He pitched in two games, recording one win and an ERA of 3.52 and 11 strikeouts in seven ⅔ innings, contributing to Japan’s WBC victory. After returning to Japan, Sasaki made strides by setting a new Japanese record of tying the highest speed limit (165 kilometers per hour) held by Shohei Ohtani.
However, durability issues have hampered Sasaki. He only played 91 innings in 15 games in 2023 due to blisters, fever and side injury. His outstanding performances, including seven wins, four losses, 1.78 ERA and 135 strikeouts, also faded due to his lack of innings.
After the end of the 2023 season, Sasaki was at the center of the controversy by creating noise related to his advancement to the U.S. As he entered the new season after settling the conflict, Sasaki frequently left due to injury this year, failing to meet the stipulated innings with 10 wins and 5 losses, 2.35 ERA, and 129 strikeouts in 111 innings. Sasaki, who left 64 games with 29 wins and 15 losses and 2.10 ERA in the NPB stage, will finally be able to advance to the big leagues after completing the 2024 season with Chiba Lotte’s permission to post in the MLB.
Another Japanese pitcher connected to the Dodgers is 토토사이트 Yusei Kikuchi (33), “left-hander fireballer” who is three years his senior in high school. He entered the big league by signing a big contract worth $109 million (about 152 billion won) for three plus four years with the Seattle Mariners in 2019, and he had a sluggish performance of 15-24 with a 4.97 ERA over three seasons. In the end, after a three-year, $44 million (about 61.4 billion won) contract ended, Kikuchi came to the FA market as Seattle did not execute a four-year, $66 million (about 92 billion won) option.
Kikuchi, who signed a three-year, $36 million (W46 billion) contract with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2022, was sluggish with a 6-7 record and 5.19 ERA in his first year on the transfer, but had his best season since entering the U.S. with an 11-6 record and 3.86 ERA in 2023.
Kikuchi, who is in his sixth MLB year this year, wore his Houston uniform through a trade on July 30 after recording a disappointing 4-9 record and 4.75 ERA in 22 games for Toronto. On his new team, Kikuchi rebounded with a 5-1 record and 2.70 ERA in 10 games and was back on the market as an FA.
The local media “Dodgers Way” said, “Kikuchi is drawing attention in the FA market thanks to his performance after moving to Houston, and Dodgers, Los Angeles Angels, Toronto and Chicago Cubs, and Baltimore Orioles can compete for him.” The media predicted, “The Dodgers, which want to recruit two additional starting pitchers, could consider Kikuchi as a left-handed starter option in the lower rotation if they fail to recruit Max Fried.”
The Dodgers already has the status of a national team in Japan. Having Ohtani, the most influential star player, Yamamoto, the NPB’s best pitcher, the Dodgers reached its peak as it won the World Series. If Yamamoto, who won the starting position, recovers from elbow surgery and joins the team of Ohtani Sasaki and Kikuchi, who are preparing both pitching and hitting next season, the Dodgers will effectively be no different from the starting lineup for the Japanese national team.
The Dodgers have already solidified their intention to target the Japanese market since the moment they awarded Ohtani a 10-year, $700 million (about 975.8 billion won) and Yamamoto a 12-year, $325 million (about 453.1 billion won) mega contract. President Friedman also announced his goal to make Japanese baseball fans “Dodger Blue” at the time of Ohtani’s official joining ceremony. Attention is focusing on whether the Dodgers will continue their pro-Japanese team’s move by recruiting two more Japanese pitchers in the FA market.