Sports
Rosenthal: When Roki Sasaki signs, other international amateurs will suffer. They shouldn’t
The excitement over Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki coming to Major League Baseball should be tempered by the likelihood that his signing will produce unintended consequences — teenage Latin American prospects who will be abandoned by the team that signs him.
Sasaki, 23, might be a top-of-the-rotation starter as soon as next season. The current international signing period ends Dec. 15. If, as expected, he delays his choice until the next period, which opens Jan. 15, the team he picks almost certainly will expend its entire bonus pool on him, breaking pre-existing verbal commitments with Latin American players who are further away from the majors.
Depriving those players of life-changing money isn’t right. And baseball should not allow it to happen.
The system for signing international players is broken, has been for a long time. Since teams are restricted in what they can spend on those players, many budget out agreements well in advance of the opening of the international signing period, trying to maximize their bonus pool allotment. Players cannot officially sign until they are 16, but teams often strike verbal deals with players from the Dominican Republic and other countries who are as young as 12. Such deals technically are forbidden, and not binding.
As detailed by Baseball America’s Ben Badler, the players who likely would be spurned by Sasaki’s team would be left in a lurch, their futures uncertain. In effect, they would be collateral damage in a system that no longer would exist if MLB and the Players Association had agreed on an international draft in 2022. Sasaki almost certainly would have been the top pick this year. The players whose agreements his signing might jeopardize would have been eligible for selection.
It is not unusual for teams to back out of verbal deals with Latin American prospects. An issue with a player’s physical might be one reason. A reduction in a team’s international budget might be another. An overzealous commitment to too many players might be a third. But as Badler points out, if a team has an agreement with a player at this late stage, less than two months before the 2025 signing period opens, it expects to sign him. If those deals are broken, the players will likely need to accept reduced bonuses from other teams, if they can find openings at all. This could create a ripple effect if players sign with new clubs who then have to break agreements they had previously made in order to fit the new deals into their bonus pool. Players who are caught in this shuffle also could wait to sign until 2026, though teams already have made commitments to players in that class, too, and those players would be a year older.
A solution to all this is possible, if MLB wants to take responsibility rather than allow a team to drop the hammer on a group of eager kids, many of whom come from impoverished backgrounds: Allow Sasaki to sign separately from his new team’s international pool. Uphold the preexisting agreements with the Latin American prospects. Do the honorable thing, rather than simply blame a dishonorable system that should have been fixed long ago.
This is not to suggest Sasaki should become an unrestricted free agent, not when he has yet to fulfill the requirement of being 25 and playing six seasons in a foreign professional league the way Japanese right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto had last offseason. The same basic framework for Sasaki’s contract would apply. His bonus from whichever team wins the bidding could be capped at $7.56 million, a sum that would match the largest pool available in the 2025 signing period. The team that signed him happily would take on the additional cost.
Japan’s Yoshinobu Yamamoto was an unrestricted free agent when he signed with the Dodgers last winter. His countryman, Roki Sasaki, is subject to a different set of rules because of his age. (Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn Images)
Wait, you might say, no such exception was necessary for Shohei Ohtani, who fell under the same restrictions as Sasaki when he signed with the Los Angeles Angels in December 2017. The difference then was the calendar: In 2017, the international signing period opened on July 2 and closed the following June 15. No preexisting agreements needed to be broken. Deals for the bigger names in that class, which included Julio Rodríguez and Wander Franco, had been official for months.
It is ridiculous that young, established Japanese professionals are placed in the same category as amateurs from Latin America and other regions, but that’s another story. In 2021, the league shifted the dates of the international signing period so that it would run from Jan. 15 to Dec. 15. If Sasaki is posted soon enough, he could sign during the current period. But it would behoove him and his Japanese club, the Chiba Lotte Marines, to wait.
The team with the most money left in its bonus pool for the current period, the Los Angeles Dodgers, has slightly more than $2.5 million available, according to Baseball America. A team can trade for up to an additional 60 percent of its original allotment, but the 2025 bonus pools, ranging from $5.1 million to $7.56 million, still would be greater. More money for Sasaki and more money for the Marines, who would receive a release fee equal to 20 percent of Sasaki’s bonus under the current rules.
Separating Sasaki from the system, if only as a one-time exception, would raise uncomfortable questions. What would happen the next time a ballyhooed international professional under the age of 25 announces his intention to play in the majors? How would the league determine whether a player was good enough to warrant the same treatment as Sasaki? And would the team that lands Sasaki gain an unfair competitive advantage if it also was permitted to sign the rest of its international class, a group that generally consists of 10 to 30 players?
Sorry, this isn’t that complicated. The current collective bargaining agreement expires on Dec. 1, 2026. No international free agent with Sasaki’s profile and talent is on the horizon for the next two years. So, to avoid the issue resurfacing, MLB and the union would simply need to agree on an international draft in the next CBA. For reasons that go well beyond Sasaki, their motivation to create a better feeder system for international talent should only be increasing.
Almost three years ago, The Athletic reported on corruption in the current system, with teams pledging contracts to players in Latin America before they were even teenagers. Earlier this month, both ESPN and Baseball America reported on MLB investigations that led to the quashing of deals for teenage prospects who were found to have falsified their ages and identities.
The international draft is an imperfect solution with its share of detractors. For years, it has been a sticking point between MLB and the Players Association. But the union, in the last round of bargaining, dropped its philosophical opposition to the concept. The league offered to eliminate the qualifying offer system in exchange for the draft. The union countered the league’s proposal with one of its own, and the two sides wound up $69 million apart. While the parties also had other differences, their argument mostly boiled down to money.
As for the imbalance of one team getting Sasaki plus an entire international class, what are we really talking about? International amateurs typically sign at 16. The ones who become major leaguers generally require four or five years of development, and most never even reach that level. The biggest advantage for a team that winds up with Sasaki in addition to a full international class would be Sasaki. True, that team also might land a Juan Soto or Vladimir Guerrero Jr. But signing top international talents doesn’t always guarantee those players will have any impact in the big leagues. And far greater inequities exist in the sport.
If the league isn’t keen on making an exception with Sasaki, it could explore other options. Adding to the other 29 teams’ bonus pools to allow them to sign players who lose their agreements with Sasaki’s club. Finding a way to give those players some form of financial security while allowing them to become free agents. Allowing a team to pay Sasaki in 2025 but count him against its pool in ’26, giving players to whom the team verbally committed for ’26 more time to find new deals.
Clearly, there is no perfect answer. But baseball people, when forced to accept a difficult circumstance, often acknowledge the need to “wear it.” A general manager makes a bad trade, wear it. A fielder makes a critical error, wear it. A starting pitcher struggles but needs to cover innings, wear it.
The likelihood of Sasaki signing in the next period raises a different kind of difficult circumstance. A select group of Latin American teenagers stands to lose deals in the hundreds of thousands, if not millions. Let’s hear someone explain why those players might need to wear it. There’s no way it should happen, if this sport has any conscience.
(Top photo of Roki Sasaki in the 2023 WBC: Eric Espada / Getty Images)
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Only one more week of the 2025 NFL regular season remains, as Week 17 brought about some more playoff implications and even 2026 NFL Draft key positions.
The biggest takeaway from the slate of Week 17 is that two divisions in the NFL — the AFC North and NFC South — will be determined by whoever wins key matchups in Week 18.
First, it’s the Pittsburgh Steelers getting upset by the Cleveland Browns at home, as Aaron Rodgers couldn’t find Marquez Valdes-Scantling on a controversial game-ending play in the end zone. That loss sets up the AFC North title game between the Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, which is only possibly thanks to a road victory where Derrick Henry scored four touchdowns against the Green Bay Packers.
Then, despite both the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers losing their respective matchups, the NFL tiebreakers make their Week 18 bout the NFC South title game.
Aaron Rodgers of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts during the second quarter of the game against the Cleveland Browns at Huntington Bank Field on Dec. 28, 2025, in Cleveland. (Nick Cammett/Getty Images)
And while everyone was focused on the NFL playoff picture, the two-game 4 o’clock slate gave us the New York Giants against the Las Vegas Raiders, the winner of which owning the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft.
The Giants would’ve solidified the pick with a loss, but Jaxson Dart and the Giants’ offense blew out Geno Smith and the Raiders to relinquish the pick, which now belongs in Sin City.
NFL WEEK 16 SCORES: PLAYOFF PRESSURE LEADS TO THRILLING FINISHES ACROSS LEAGUE
Here’s how every NFL game played out:
THURSDAY, DEC. 25
– DALLAS COWBOYS 30, WASHINGTON COMMANDERS 23
– MINNESOTA VIKINGS 23, DETROIT LIONS 10
– DENVER BRONCOS 20, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS 13
Dak Prescott (4) of the Dallas Cowboys celebrates after his team’s touchdown against the Washington Commanders in the second quarter of a game at Northwest Stadium on Dec. 25, 2025 in Landover, Maryland. (Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
SATURDAY, DEC. 27
– HOUSTON TEXANS 20, LOS ANGELES CHARGERS 16
– BALTIMORE RAVENS 41, GREEN BAY PACKERS 24
SUNDAY, DEC. 28
– CINCINNATI BENGALS 37, ARIZONA CARDINALS 14
– CLEVELAND BROWNS 13, PITTSBURGH STEELERS 7
– NEW ORLEANS SAINTS 34, TENNESSEE TITANS 26
– JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS 23, INDIANAPOLIS COLTS 17
– MIAMI DOLPHINS 20, TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 17
– NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 42, NEW YORK JETS 10
– SEATTLE SEAHAWKS 27, CAROLINA PANTHERS 10
– NEW YORK GIANTS 34, LAS VEGAS RAIDERS 10
– PHILADELPHIA EAGLES 13, BUFFALO BILLS 12
– SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS-CHICAGO BEARS (TBD)
Bundle FOX One and FOX Nation to stream the entire FOX Nation library, plus live FOX News, Sports, and Entertainment at our lowest price of the year. The offer ends on Jan. 4, 2026. (Fox One; Fox Nation)
MONDAY, DEC. 29
– LOS ANGELES RAMS-ATLANTA FALCONS (TBD)
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Opening day at Santa Anita might have been delayed by two days because of heavy rain, but it was worth the wait for no other reason than to watch the stretch run of the $200,000 Laffit Pincay Jr. Stakes.
And for trainer Bob Baffert, it was even better than that. Not only did Nysos and Nevada Beach run 1-2 for him Sunday in the thrilling Grade 2 Pincay, but he also captured the two Grade 1 races he entered, the La Brea with Usha and the Malibu with Goal Oriented.
It was the fourth time Baffert won three stakes on the same day at Santa Anita, including the same trio of races on opening day in 2022.
He was especially excited after the Pincay, and not just by what he saw on the track.
“You know what’s great?” Baffert said as he stood in the winner’s circle and motioned to the grandstand, which was crowded with an announced 41,962 fans, the largest opening day audience since 2016. “It’s great to see this place packed. Look, everybody came out. They’ll come out to see a good horse and everybody was on the apron for this one. And they saw a great horse race.
“It was actually fun watching.”
Particularly for Baffert, who knew as the field turned into the stretch he couldn’t lose. Nysos, the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile champion ridden by Flavien Prat, was on the inside of Nevada Beach, the Goodwood Stakes winner ridden by Juan Hernandez.
Nysos was the heavy 1-5 favorite, having lost only one of his seven lifetime races, but for at least a moment it looked as if he might not get past Nevada Beach, at 3 a year younger than his stablemate.
But, in a virtual rerun of the Dirt Mile, when Prat and Nysos edged past Hernandez and another Baffert 3-year-old, Citizen Bull, the older horse once again prevailed, again by a head.
“I was close,” Hernandez said. “My horse ran really good. I was in front on the stretch for a couple of jumps and then it was just back and forth between Nysos and my horse. … He was giving me everything he had.”
The Grade 2 Pincay (formerly the San Antonio) was one of six stakes races on opening day, which is traditionally held the day after Christmas. It wasn’t one of the three Grade 1 races, but the presence of Nysos made it feel like the day’s main event.
Nysos returned $2.40 after running 1 1/16 miles in 1:42.36, the fastest since the Pincay was moved to that distance in 2017.
Baffert said in the leadup to the race that Nysos likely would start next in the $20-million Saudi Cup on Feb. 14 in Riyadh, while Nevada Beach was more apt to go to the $3-million Pegasus World Cup next month at Gulfstream Park. After the Pincay, he didn’t rule out sending both to Saudi Arabia.
The only downside to Baffert’s stakes day was having to scratch Barnes and Cornucopian, the two morning-line favorites, from the Malibu. Barnes suffered a “minor setback” Saturday while Cornucopian had an incident in the paddock minutes before the race, which forced his withdrawal (he was uninjured).
No matter, though; Goal Oriented ($4.20) took over favoritism and earned his first stakes win, defeating stablemate Midland Money by a length in 1:20.97, the fastest Malibu since 2016.
“I’m just happy it turned out that we won it because it was so upsetting for a little bit,” Baffert said.
Usha ($13.20) was starting in a Grade 1 race for the first time, but she won the La Brea like a filly who has more victories in her future. She finished seven furlongs in a rapid 1:21.68 to beat 2-1 favorite Formula Rossa by 5¼ lengths.
The first of the six stakes races was the $200,000 Mathis Mile for 3-year-olds on the turf. Tempus Volat, trained by Leonard Powell, led the race but was passed in the final yard by Hiding in Honduras ($21.40), a 9-1 long shot ridden by Antonio Fresu for Jonathan Thomas. Namaron, the 1-2 favorite ridden by Prat, finished third.
There was no such drama in the second turf stakes, the $100,000 San Gabriel, in which Cabo Spirit ($14.80), trained by George Papaprodromou, took the lead shortly after the start under Mike Smith and rolled to a 1¼-length victory over Astronomer. Stay Hot, the 2-1 favorite, lost a photo for third to Mondego.
The final race of the day was the other Grade 1 event, the $300,000 American Oaks, won by another Thomas trainee, Ambaya, a 12-1 long shot. The daughter of Ghostzapper was ridden by Kazushi Kimura, who picked up the mount when Fresu injured his ankle earlier in the day.
Etc.
The two cards that were rained out over the weekend will be made up Monday and Wednesday, with free parking and admission. Both days will offer two stakes races; Monday’s highlight is the $200,000 Joe Hernandez, which includes Motorious and Sumter, who were 1-2 in the race last year, and Imagination, last month’s Breeders’ Cup Sprint runner-up who will be racing on turf for the first time.
Rain is forecast beginning Wednesday, with track officials saying they will monitor the situation before deciding on how it will affect the racing, if at all. The schedule calls for racing Thursday through Sunday before Santa Anita begins its normal schedule of Fridays through Sundays on Jan. 9.
Sports
Ravens quarterback hopes to provide words of encouragement to Shedeur Sanders before Browns-Steelers game
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Tyler Huntley said Saturday night he hoped to give Cleveland Browns rookie Shedeur Sanders a call before his game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Ravens defeated the Green Bay Packers to keep their playoff hopes alive and need the Browns to pull off an upset victory over the Steelers. If Pittsburgh wins, they clinch the AFC North division title and a spot in the playoffs. If the Browns win, then the division title and a playoff spot would come down to their Week 18 matchup.
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Tyler Huntley (5) speaks during a press conference after an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025, in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (AP Photo/Matt Ludtke)
“I’m trying to make it out of here, so I can call Shedeur really quick and make sure he gets it done,” Huntley told reporters, adding that he would probably watch the game at home.
Huntley was in Browns training camp when he, Sanders, Dillon Gabriel, Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco were all vying for the starting job. Flacco ended up winning the job before he was traded in the middle of the season, while Pickett was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders. Huntley was cut and signed with the Ravens. Gabriel started a few games during the season and Sanders earned his own showcase to end the season.
The one-time Pro Bowler got to know Sanders in camp.
Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders looks to pass against the Buffalo Bills during the first half of an NFL football game in Cleveland, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/David Richard)
RAVENS RIDE DERRICK HENRY’S FOUR TOUCHDOWNS TO KEEP PLAYOFF HOPES ALIVE
“Just when we got to the Browns. I knew of him, and he probably knew of me, but once we got to the Browns, we linked up a little bit,” Huntley added. “He’s a cool dude.”
Sanders and the Browns pulling off a win would be the marquee victory the young quarterback is looking for.
Bundle FOX One and FOX Nation to stream the entire FOX Nation library, plus live FOX News, Sports, and Entertainment at our lowest price of the year. The offer ends on Jan. 4, 2026. (Fox One; Fox Nation)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
ESPN noted that Deion Sanders, Shedeur’s father, intercepted a pass from Aaron Rodgers when the latter quarterback made an appearance for the Green Bay Packers in 2005. About 20 years later, Rodgers will compete against Sanders’ son in a pivotal matchup.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
The Ty Simpson Conversation Alabama Can’t Ignore
Opinion: Before Alaska becomes an AI data farm, be sure to read the fine print
Arizona men’s basketball cruises to win at Utah in Big 12 opener
Acuff scores 29 points to lead No. 18 Arkansas to a 86-75 win over No. 19 Tennessee
Heavy rain, high tides cause flooding along stretch of Northern California
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Video: ‘It Didn’t Have to Happen This Way:’ U.Va. Faculty Call for Review of Police Response to Protests
For those who help the poor, 2025 goes down as a year of chaos
Marjorie Taylor Greene criticizes Trump’s meetings with Zelenskyy, Netanyahu: ‘Can we just do America?’
US visa ban targets ex-Commissioner Breton over alleged censorship
‘Bomb cyclone’ forecasted to bring heavy snow, blizzard conditions and dangerous travel
The biggest losers of 2025: Who fell flat as the year closed
-
Entertainment1 week agoHow the Grinch went from a Yuletide bit player to a Christmas A-lister
-
Connecticut1 week agoSnow Accumulation Estimates Increase For CT: Here Are The County-By-County Projections
-
Entertainment1 week agoPat Finn, comedy actor known for roles in ‘The Middle’ and ‘Seinfeld,’ dies at 60
-
World6 days agoHamas builds new terror regime in Gaza, recruiting teens amid problematic election
-
Indianapolis, IN1 week agoIndianapolis Colts playoffs: Updated elimination scenario, AFC standings, playoff picture for Week 17
-
Southeast1 week agoTwo attorneys vanish during Florida fishing trip as ‘heartbroken’ wife pleads for help finding them
-
World1 week agoSnoop Dogg, Lainey Wilson, Huntr/x and Andrea Bocelli Deliver Christmas-Themed Halftime Show for Netflix’s NFL Lions-Vikings Telecast
-
World1 week agoBest of 2025: Top five defining moments in the European Parliament