2025 Fantasy Baseball: Roki Sasaki Profile, Preview, Predictions
The Dodgers invested in another impact arm with an elite ceiling from Japan. Sasaki looks poises to make LA's starting rotation in his rookie season. On a team full of aces, he will have time to build up his inning count in the majors.
Rōki Sasaki vs. Shohei Ohtani, 102mph Fastball Mechanics. pic.twitter.com/L59x6AIF1A
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) January 18, 2025
SP Roki Sasaki, LAD (ADP – 67.9)
Sasaki came to the Dodgers with four years of experience in Japan. He went 30-15 with a 2.02 ERA, 0.883 WHIP, and 524 strikeouts over 414.2 innings. In his time with Nippon Professional Baseball, he averaged 6.2 innings per appearance while missing some time with various injuries.
Typically, a player coming to the United States leads to a massive contract, but Sasaki arrived two years ahead of that curve, leading to him signing as an international free agent. Los Angeles gave him a $6.5 million signing bonus. There haven’t been any other details about his deal with the Dodgers. Coming out of high school, Sasaki had a right elbow scare that suggested TJ surgery. A year off with rest and a change in his training cleared up his issue.
Sasaki has a high-90s fastball with triple-digit upside. However, in 2024, he lost some velocity at the top end of his four-seamer (96.8 mph). His second-best pitch is a split-finger fastball that sits in the low 90s. He can move the ball away from both sides of the plate. Sasaki uses a slider as his top-breaking pitch, especially against righties.
Fantasy Outlook: Sasaki's decision to come to the US was twofold. He wanted financial security earlier in his career, just in case a significant injury crept into his equation. By pitching for the Dodgers with success, his right arm will drive endorsement deals and position him to become a free agent in the majors earlier. Los Angeles will ease Sasaki into their rotation in 2025 with a plan to have him pitch in the postseason. The next step in his development should be about 150.0 innings (1/6 coming in the playoffs). His excellent command, paired with his electric fastball and elite swing-and-miss split-finger pitch, should excite the fantasy market. I expect about 125.0 innings in his rookie fantasy season with success in ERA, WHIP, and strikeouts.
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With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.