Dave Dombrowski 'Doesn't Expect' Phillies Will Get Meeting With Roki Sasaki

The offseason for the Philadelphia Phillies keeps bringing tough news with the latest update being they likely won't get a meeting with Roki Sasaki.

Mar 20, 2023; Miami, Florida, USA; Japan starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (14) celebrates with teammates after the first inning against Mexico at LoanDepot Park / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

This winter has not been anything to write home about for the Philadelphia Phillies.

To date, they have signed reliever Jordan Romano and came to an agreement with Max Kepler as their lone Major League roster moves.

That's quite different than what was expected with an aggressive executive and owner willing to spend money to bring home another World Series title to this city.

It's not over yet, and there are plenty of high-profile players remaining on the market who the Phillies can bring in, but the fan base is certainly getting anxious when it comes to the lack of moves being made.

One that certainly would have been notable is signing Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki.

With Philadelphia looking for another starting pitcher, landing someone with his ceiling who is just 23 years old would be a massive get for this franchise, especially when considering they've never signed a player coming over from Japan.

The Phillies are trying to improve their standing in the Asian markets, knowing they are way behind when it comes to that aspect of international scouting, and with Sasaki on their radar after seeing him play in person with his Nippon Professional Baseball team, adding him would have been a major statement.

Unfortunately, that dream seems to be over.

According to Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer, the team has not been invited to meet with the phenom yet, and Dave Dombrowski doesn't expect one to come.

The #Phillies haven’t been invited to make a presentation to Roki Sasaki. At this point in the offseason, and with other teams scheduled for a first meeting with him, Dave Dombrowski doesn’t expect that they will be in the Sasaki sweepstakes.

— Scott Lauber (@ScottLauber) December 20, 2024

It's a bitter pill to swallow after coming so close to signing Yoshinobu Yamamoto last year.

Philadelphia eventually has to sign someone out of Japan, but with them not even getting a meeting with Sasaki at this point in time, it's another reminder that this franchise is not on the radar of Japanese players like other organizations around the league are.