The San Diego Padres are not dead in the waters in the race to land Japanese sensation Roki Sasaki.
The common belief is that Sasaki will sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers. However, recent rumors that Sasaki and his management team have agreed under the table to join the Dodgers have riled up his agent Joel Wolfe.
Padres: Roki Sasaki’s agent not fond of Dodgers signing rumors
As Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported, Wolfe openly criticized the Los Angeles rumors, saying this in part (h/t FanSided’s Mark Powell):
“While a bunch of executives who should know me better and do a lot of business with me insult my integrity by insinuating that I would be a part of some type of nefarious agreement,” Wolfe told The Athletic, “in reality, this is just poor sportsmanship.”
Sasaki’s MLB decision may narrow down to Dodgers or Padres
Ultimately, rumblings such as the ones that have Wolfe angered likely won’t hinder him from executing the best deal for his client. Nevertheless, Sasaki is expected to do his due diligence in selecting his first MLB ball club.
The Dodgers have been held in a favorable light during these sweepstakes because they harbor the 23-year-old’s compatriots Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. That, on top of L.A.’s 2024 World Series win, market, organization, and environment make them a prime destination for the righty talent who is seeking those elements from his eventual landing spot.
However, the Padres also have one of Sasaki’s countrymen in star pitcher Yu Darvish. There has been a mentor-mentee relationship between them over the years and that could sway the former to join the Padres this offseason. No matter, the way in which Sasaki’s agent openly spoke out against the idea of there being a hushed agreement in play speaks to how the sweepstakes could be more open than previously thought.