Toronto Blue Jays Met With Superstar Japanese Free Agent Roki Sasaki, Per Report

Roki Sasaki is just the latest top-tier player the Toronto Blue Jays have targeted on the open market, following in the footsteps of Juan Soto, Max Fried, Corbin Burnes and Teoscar Hernández.
Mar 20, 2023; Miami, Florida, USA; Japan starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (14) delivers a pitch during the first inning against Mexico at LoanDepot Park.
Mar 20, 2023; Miami, Florida, USA; Japan starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (14) delivers a pitch during the first inning against Mexico at LoanDepot Park. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
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The Toronto Blue Jays have met with Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki, the Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported Monday morning.

Per Rosenthal, the team hosted Sasaki in Toronto last week. Most of the right-hander's initial meetings with other teams were held in Los Angeles.

The Blue Jays have been throwing their hat into the ring for the top free agents to hit the open market over the past two offseasons, and they have yet to land any of them. After striking out on Shohei Ohtani last winter, Toronto has made additional unsuccessful plays to sign Juan Soto, Max Fried, Corbin Burnes and Teoscar Hernández.

Sasaki could very well join that list, considering he has long been favored to sign with either the Los Angeles Dodgers or San Diego Padres. The New York Yankees, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners are in the running for his services as well.

Because he has yet to turn 25 years old, Sasaki is designated as an international amateur free agent and is subject to bonus pool restrictions. That has placed a hard cap on what the 23-year-old ace can sign for, making his market far more complex than the dollars and cents.

Sasaki will be eligible to sign with a team when the 2025 international signing period opens on Wednesday. He won't have long to decide, though, since his posting window closes on Jan. 23.

Over the course of his four-year stint with the Chiba Lotte Marines in Nippon Professional Baseball, Sasaki posted a 29-15 record, 2.10 ERA, 0.894 WHIP and 11.5 strikeouts per nine innings. He also went 1-0 with a 3.52 ERA, 1.174 WHIP and 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, winning a Gold Medal with Japan while showing off his 102 mile-per-hour fastball.

The 6-foot-4 righty was a two-time NPB All-Star, having pitched a perfect game and broken NPB's single-game strikeout record in 2022. While he dealt with shoulder soreness last season, Sasaki still went 10-5 with a 2.35 ERA, 1.036 WHIP and 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings across 18 starts.

The Blue Jays have five starting pitchers as things currently stand, but they have been looking for another so they can move second-year Cuban righty Yariel Rodríguez to the bullpen. Kevin Gausman, José Berríos, Chris Bassitt and Bowden Francis make up the rest of their rotation.

Toronto missed the playoffs in 2024 after reaching the postseason in three of the previous four years. Adding Sasaki to the top of their rotation could very well get the Blue Jays back into contention before homegrown stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette hit free agency, which could play a major role in convincing them to stay.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a Staff Writer for Fastball on the Sports Illustrated/FanNation networks. He previously covered UCLA Athletics for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's All Bruins, 247Sports' Bruin Report Online, Rivals' Bruin Blitz, the Bleav Podcast Network and the Daily Bruin, with his work as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk.