Roki Sasaki Wore the Most Significant MLB Debut Patch of 2025
Roki Sasaki made his major league debut on March 19, pitching three innings against the Chicago Cubs in his native Japan. While the start was unremarkable, with Sasaki allowing one earned run on five walks, a hit, and three strikeouts, he was the winter's biggest free agent.
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Roki Sasaki is MLB Debut patch-ready!
β MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) March 19, 2025
More on the impact the 23-year-old Japanese phenom is having on both his hometown and Los Angeles prior to his first @Dodgers outing: https://t.co/XA2vEXPihr pic.twitter.com/oApjXhIx8c
Last year, several of his Japanese teammates made their major league debuts, including Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shota Imanaga. Imanaga's patch card was pulled in December. Yamamoto's debut patch card has not surfaced publicly and is still believed to be in a pack.
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Roki Sasaki completed his long-awaited MLB debut in front of 45,000 fans in Tokyo and he's going up from here.
β Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) March 19, 2025
Over 3 innings, he touched 100.5 MPH while striking out 3 Cubs batters. Roki loaded the bases twice in the 3rd but struck out 2 straight to get out.
THE FUTURE π pic.twitter.com/kHRau6EfG6
Sasaki has some parallels to last year's rookie phenom, Paul Skenes. Skenes made his MLB debut just a few weeks shy of his 23rd birthday on May 11, 2024, while Sasaki will pitch the entire season as a 23-year-old. Sasaki is a two-time NPB All-Star and holds the world record for most consecutive strikeouts in a game with 13.
If he can replicate Skenes' rookie season to some degree, he has the potential to join a type of superstardom only seen by Shohei Ohtani and Ichiro. As for Sasaki's MLB Debut Patch card, its value will depend on how his 2025 season unfolds and how he signs the card. Will the card be signed in script, kanji, or both?
For comparison, Skenes' MLB Debut Patch card is currently at $840,000 with a buyer's premium on Fanatics Collect. So far, there have been 59 bids for the card, with more than one day left in the auction.
π ππππ ππππ: Roki Sasakiβs jersey for his first @MLB game, complete with the Debut Patch.
β Topps (@Topps) March 19, 2025
After the game, this MLB Debut Patch will be removed from Rokiβs jersey, flown from Tokyo back to the United States, put into a 1/1 signed rookie card - and inserted into a randomβ¦ pic.twitter.com/p17Oc7h5OR
