100 MPH throwing Rōki Sasaki linked to Dodgers signing rumored

LOS ANGELES – Can the Dodgers bring another big-money Japanese free agent to Los Angeles?

Flame-throwing right-hander Rōki Sasaki could be the next foreign star to join the Boys in Blue, according to rumors in MLB circles.

According to a report by sports journalist Francys Romero, Sasaki turned down an offer from the Chiba Lotte Marines, the Japanese team where the 23-year-old pitcher played for four seasons. However, Romero added in his report that Sasaki’s future remains uncertain as the Marines have yet to make a public announcement regarding the pitcher’s contract situation.

“One possibility is being posted to sign with an MLB team, while another possibility continues negotiations with the Marines,” Romero wrote on social media to his 18,400 followers on X.

Should Sasaki become available for MLB teams to sign via the postal system, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal believes the Dodgers are “heavy, heavy favorites” to land the Japanese ace.

“There is a suspicion among many in the industry — almost everyone in the industry — that if this guy gets posted,” Rosenthal said on his Fair Territory podcast. “Rōki Sasaki becomes available, the Los Angeles Dodgers will be the big, big favorites to sign him. Can you imagine what that team would do for Japan than it already has?”

If Sasaki is ultimately drafted, the lanky 6-foot-2 righty could join surefire National League MVP Shohei Ohtani and fellow Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The trio were teammates on the Samurai Japan team that won the gold medal in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

Sasaki made global headlines with his pitches of over 100mph on the radar gun before and during the WBC tournament. During the semi-finals of the tournament, Sasaki knocked out Mexico’s Randy Arozarena with a speed of 160 km/h.

Sasaki, nicknamed “the monster of the Reiwa era” in Japan, struck out 11 batters in 7 and ⅔ innings with a 3.52 ERA during the 2023 WBC. In Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, he struck out 129 in the 2024 season. batters out in 111 regular season innings for the Marines.

Sasaki also made headlines for throwing a perfect game for the Marines as a 20-year-old in 2022.

If Sasaki were to suit up for the Dodgers for the 2025 MLB season, his MLB debut could take place at the Tokyo Dome as the Boys in Blue will face the Chicago Cubs – a team featuring former Samurai Japan teammates Shōta Imanaga and Seiya Suzuki – in March of the upcoming season.