An early look at Roki Sasaki cards
The 2024 MLB free agency period is underway, and many names are floating around on the "Hot Stove", but one of the biggest names isn't available to sign yet; Roki Sasaki. Sasaki, a right-handed, 23 year-old pitcher, from Rikuzentakata, Iwate, Japan has become the focal point for many clubs this offseason. Sasaki's NPB club, the Chiba Lotte Marines, announced Saturday that Sasaki would be posted; immediately making him one of the biggest free agents "available".
Per NPB rules, once officially posted, all thirty teams will have 45 days to negotiate with Sasaki; that time frame has not begun as Sasaki is yet to be posted, though the process has begun. If no deal is reached within the 45-day time frame, Sasaki would return to his NPB team. The intriguing thing about Sasaki for MLB clubs is that there is a restriction of how much he can sign for as an "amateur free-agent", so in other words, Sasaki's contract will be a tiny fraction of the contract the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Yoshinobu Yamamoto to last offseason of $325 million.
Why is Sasaki one of the hottest names in the 2024 MLB free agent pool? Over the course of four seasons in Japan, Sasaki pitched 412 innings, striking out 524, issuing only 91 walks, while holding a 2.02 ERA. Sasaki's fastball reaches up to 102 mph, while also having a devastating splitter and slider in his arsenal. Showcasing his stuff in the 2023 World Baseball Classic for Team Japan, Sasaki struck out 11 over 7 ⅔ innings. The only concerning factor of Sasaki's career thus far, is that he's only pitched 100+ innings in a season twice (126 pitchers in the MLB reached 100+ innings this year).
Luckily for sports card collectors, Sasaki already has a handful of cards produced of him. From cards commemorating the 2023 World Baseball Classic, to his BBM rookie, there is plenty to chase. Here is a breakdown of the current cards produced of Sasaki over the course of his career, while also providing some recent sales of each. All data was provided by Card Ladder.
1. 2020 BBM
Sasaki's first cards come in 2020 BBM, a japanese card product that features the athletes in NPB. Sasaki has been included in multiple BBM releases, but his 2020 set cards are the most sought after, as they are his rookie and first cards ever produced of him. The set features both his first serial numbered cards and patch cards. Sasaki's "base" rookie card from this set in PSA 10 form (POP 397), sold for $500 via ebay (fixed price) on November 11th. Another recent sale from this set comes from one of Sasaki's first memorabilia cards, serial numbered /60, selling for $338 via ebay (best offer) on November 11th.
2. 2021-23 Topps + Topps Chrome NPB
Topps landed the NPB license in late 2021, with their first product being 2021 Topps NPB. This set has continued to be released in following years, with Sasaki being featured in 2022 and 2023 as well. Topps later went on to also release the 2021, 2022, and 2023 is chrome versions also, as Topps Chrome NPB. Sasaki being in each of these six sets, this offers the most variety for adding a Sasaki card to your collection. Sasaki's first Topps card in the 2021 set, in a PSA 10 (POP 345) sold for $90 via ebay (best offer) on November 11th.
3. 2022 Bowman NPB
In 2022, Topps released a NPB Bowman set; separate from the Topps "flagship" set. Each card in the set has both a “base” paper and chrome versions. A paper version of Sasaki's 2022 Bowman in a PSA 10 (POP 336) sold for $42 via ebay (fixed price) on November 11th.
4. 2023 Topps Series Two
Sasaki has a card in the 2023 Topps Series 2 release. They commemorated some of the WBC athletes with an insert set that featured 60 different players that participated in the 2023 tournament. Other than Sasaki's Topps Now card that was released before this set, this is the first flagship set that pictured Sasaki in his Team Japan uniform. Sasaki’s “base card” from this set, sold for $8 via ebay (best offer) on November 11th.
5. 2023 Bowman Chrome
In 2023 Bowman Chrome, there was a WBC insert set that featured players in their countries uniforms, with the flag in the background, known as the “WBC Flag Refractor Variation”. Each card in that set has a “base card” refractor serial numbered /499, also having six other numbered variations to chase. Sasaki had a green refractor /99, from this set sell for $200 via ebay (best offer), on November 11th.
6. 2023 Topps World Baseball Classic
Topps released a 2023 World Baseball Classic online exclusive set that featured 100 total players, showcasing all 20 nations that participated in the tournament. Sasaki’s Image Variation from this set sold for $50 via ebay (best offer) on November 11th.
7. 2023 Topps Now
During and post the 2023 World Baseball Classic tournament, Topps released a series of Topps Now cards commemorating key moments that took place. Sasaki had a card released showcasing his pitches reaching 100+ mph 21 times in just 66 pitches. This card in a PSA 10 (POP 265), sold for $89.99 via ebay (fixed price) on November 12th.
