The New York Yankees have six capable starting pitchers on the roster: Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon, Nestor Cortes, Clarke Schmidt, Luis Gil, and Marcus Stroman. Good teams, however, place immense value on rotation depth and often try to have at least eight viable options, if not more.
That, and the chance to roster a franchise-altering talent like Roki Sasaki on the cheap (he is subject to international bonus money restrictions because of his age) might be compelling reasons to pursue the Japanese free agent through the posting process.
Will the Yankees have a fighting chance to land him? Numerous Japanese free agents have recently opted for West Coast teams to stay closer to home. The Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners and other contenders on the western part of America are expected to be the Yankees’ biggest foes.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone, however, certainly hopes his team can be considered one of the potential landing spots for Sasaki.
Sasaki would dramatically increase the Yankees’ rotation ceiling
“Hopefully we’re in the mix … It’s a unique and special talent, a guy with top-of-the-rotation qualities,” Boone said, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic.
Sasaki saw his fastball velo dip a bit in 2024 while pitching for the Chiba Lotte Marines, but his numbers were impressive nonetheless. He is armed with a heater that can touch 100 mph, a filthy splitter, and a slider.
With plenty of experience on the international stage (he is a 2023 World Baseball Classic champion with Japan) and in the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league, Sasaki is ready for the next step.
The Yankees will have plenty of competition, but Boone is optimistic that the free-agent hurler can consider them a nice destination.
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If he adjusts to MLB hitters quickly and is anything close to what the world has seen from him, the team that signs him could have a bonafide star pitching with a dirt-cheap salary.