Sports
Roki Sasaki, coveted Japanese ace, will be made available to MLB teams: Will Dodgers strike again?
Roki Sasaki, a premier pitcher in Japan and the No. 3 ranked player in The Athletic’s top 40 MLB free agent big board, is on the precipice of making his long-anticipated jump to Major League Baseball.
The Chiba Lotte Marines, Sasaki’s club in Nippon Professional Baseball, announced early Saturday morning that they will post the 23-year-old right-hander, thus making him available to MLB teams in what is expected to be a wide-open sweepstakes for his services.
Because of his age, Sasaki will be considered an international amateur in MLB’s system, meaning that he would make the minimum salary and his bonus will be capped. Every MLB team is assigned a dollar amount to spend on international amateurs and cannot exceed it, although they can trade for some additional space. Teams on the low end are allotted $5.1 million for 2025 and $7.6 million on the high end. Therefore, both Sasaki’s salary and the 20 percent fee that will be paid to the Lotte Marines will be relatively small figures.
It’s a situation similar to the one faced by Shohei Ohtani when he arrived in the U.S., which runs in stark contrast to last winter’s top prize out of the Japanese market, Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
“He’s not the finished product that Yamamoto is,” one club official recently told The Athletic’s Will Sammon and Patrick Mooney. “But there’s not many people in the world who are more talented.”
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MLB GM meetings: What we’re hearing about star Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki
Sasaki was coveted since his days in high school, and few pitchers from Japan will arrive in the U.S. with as much hype. His fastball was clocked in the triple digits. In a recent analysis, The Athletic’s Eno Sarris noted that even with a slight step back in velocity and results for last season, Sasaki still showed signs of translating his success stateside. Only Juan Soto and Corbin Burnes rank ahead of Sasaki on The Athletic’s free-agent rankings.
“If he was someone in the amateur draft, he’d easily be a top-five draft pick,” one high-ranking executive in the sport said. “Probably better.”
It’s unclear which international class Sasaki will be a part of. MLB’s 2024 international signing period runs until Dec. 15, and the 2025 period begins Jan. 15. Clubs are committed to players in both classes already, but Sasaki is a special talent that teams have been preparing to court.
It’s unclear exactly when that process will be underway, but once Sasaki is posted, he has 45 days to sign. He is expected to join an MLB team for 2025. The news went out at 1 a.m. on the East Coast of the U.S., which was 3 p.m. in Chiba.
While Sasaki’s arrival in MLB this offseason was long speculated, it also seemed possible it might wait a couple of years. Had Chiba Lotte delayed until 2026, when Sasaki was 25, both he and the club could have made considerably more money. Sasaki then would be considered a “foreign professional” in the eyes of MLB’s collective bargaining agreement, and he would not be subject to the international bonus pool. That’s the classification Yamamoto fell under last offseason when he signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers for $325 million.
The Dodgers, home to Shohei Ohtani in addition to Yamamoto, have been often linked to Sasaki. The New York Mets and Chicago Cubs have followed him closely as well, among others. Meanwhile, the Yankees and Padres have scouted the Pacific Rim extensively and have been aggressive in that market.
NPB players have to play for nine years in the league to become an international free agent and freely sign with an MLB team, without being posted for bidding. Because that wait time is so long, the best Japanese players typically arrive in the U.S. via the bidding system.
Sasaki pitched for Japan in the 2023 World Baseball Classic and drew attention for hitting triple digits with his fastball. He throws a slider and splitter as well. His durability is likely his largest question mark.
(Photo: Sam Navarro / USA Today)
Sports
Ole Miss staffer references Aaron Hernandez while discussing ‘chaotic’ coaching complications with LSU
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The chaos between LSU coaches who left Ole Miss alongside Lane Kiffin but are still coaching the Rebels in the College Football Playoff is certainly a whirlwind.
Joe Judge, Ole Miss’ quarterbacks coach, has found himself in the thick of the drama — while he is not headed for Baton Rouge, he’s had to wonder who he will be working with on a weekly basis.
When asked this week about what it’s like to go through all the trials and tribulations, Judge turned heads with his answer that evoked his New England Patriots days.
Aaron Hernandez sits in the courtroom of the Attleboro District Court during his hearing. Former New England Patriot Aaron Hernandez has been indicted on a first-degree murder charge in the death of Odin Lloyd in North Attleboro, Massachusetts, on Aug. 22, 2013. (Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
“My next-door neighbor was Aaron Hernandez,” Judge said, according to CBS Sports. “I know this is still more chaotic.”
Hernandez was found guilty of the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd, which occurred just three years into his NFL career.
“If you watch those documentaries, my house is on the TV next door,” Judge added. “The detectives knocked on my door to find out where he was. I didn’t know. We just kind of talked to the organization. But it was obviously chaotic.”
Aaron Hernandez was convicted of the 2013 murder of semipro football player Odin Lloyd. (REUTERS/Brian Snyder)
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Judge, though, was able to compare the two situations to see how players can combat wild distractions.
“Those players that year handled that extremely well. Came out of that chaos, and we had some really good direction inside with some veterans and some different guys. You have something like that happen — how do you handle something like that? How do you deal with something like that? So you keep the focus on what you can handle, what you can control, which at that time was football for us, and we went through the stretch, and we were able to have success that year,” Judge said.
Judge also compared this scenario to the 2020 NFL season when he was head coach of the New York Giants, saying he would have “no idea” who would be available due to surprise positive COVID-19 tests.
Head coach Joe Judge of the New York Giants looks on during the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium. The game took place in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Dec. 19, 2021. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
The Rebels face Miami in the Fiesta Bowl, the College Football Playoff Semifinal, on Thursday night.
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Calabasas pulled off a huge win in high school basketball on Tuesday night, handing Thousand Oaks its first defeat after 16 victories in a Marmonte League opener.
The Coyotes (13-5) have quietly turned around their season after a 2-4 start, winning 11 of their last 12 games.
One of the major contributors has been 6-foot-3 junior guard Johnny Thyfault, who’s averaging 16 points and has become a fan favorite because of his dunking skills. He also leads the team in taking charging fouls.
He transferred to Calabasas after his freshman year at Viewpoint.
As for beating Thousand Oaks, coach Jon Palarz said, “We got to play them at home and had great effort.”
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
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The Atlanta Hawks have parted ways with four-time NBA All-Star point guard Trae Young, trading him to the Washington Wizards in a blockbuster move, according to ESPN.
The Hawks will reportedly be receiving veteran shooting guard CJ McCollum and forward Corey Kispert in the deal.
Washington was Young’s preferred destination, and the two sides were working on a deal to get the 27-year-old point guard to the nation’s capital.
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Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks looks on during the game against the Boston Celtics during Round 1 Game 6 of the 2023 NBA Playoffs on April 27, 2023 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. ( Adam Hagy/NBAE via Getty Images)
Young’s agents were having conversations with the Hawks, who sit at 17-21 so far this season, about trading their client out of Atlanta.
There is a mutual connection in Washington, too, as executive Travis Schlenk drafted Young fifth overall in 2018 out of Oklahoma.
It marks the end of an era for the Hawks. Young has been the focal point of their offense since he was taken in that draft. He is the team’s career leader in three-pointers and assists, having led the team to the postseason in three of his eight seasons. The Hawks went the furthest in 2021, where they made the Eastern Conference Finals.
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However, the new era was brewing already in Atlanta, with forward Jalen Johnson taking the next step in his career, averaging 23.7 points per game this season. The pickup of Nickeil Alexander-Walker also helps, as he’s averaged 20.5 points per game in 36 appearances.
Meanwhile, Young has played just 10 games this season, as he’s been dealing with leg injuries, most notably a right MCL sprain.
Trae Young #11 of the Atlanta Hawks looks on after the game against the Boston Celtics during Round One Game Five of the 2023 NBA Playoffs on April 25, 2023 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. (Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)
The Hawks also get some flexibility on their books, as they could make some more moves. Anthony Davis is reportedly available from the Dallas Mavericks, making him a good target for Atlanta.
Young has $95 million remaining on his deal that runs through the 2026-27 season, which includes a player option this offseason.
Atlanta will be taking on McCollum’s contract, though the veteran guard has a $30.6 million expiring deal.
Through his 10 games this season, Young is averaging 19.2 points, 8.9 assists and 1.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 41.5% from the field.
Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks drives down the court during the first half against the Philadelphia 76ers at State Farm Arena on April 7, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
Over his career, Young has dropped 25.2 points and 9.8 assists per game, while leading the league in the latter category last season with 11.6 per contest.
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