NEWSLETTER
It remains an open question just when Japanese ace Roki Sasaki will come to Major League Baseball, but when he does, you can be assured that the Chicago Cubs will be among the teams at least TRYING to sign him. I tend to think almost no team that isn’t the Los Angeles Dodgers will have a great shot, but I could at least make the argument that the Cubs – having shown what a great place it can be for Japanese players to come and flourish – would be among the better positioned clubs outside of L.A.
It seems Cubs President Jed Hoyer agrees that the organization might have a shot at Roki Sasaki whenever the time comes, or at least you could infer as much from this:
Hoyer told 670 The Score that he’s actually been over to Japan more than once already this year, and we know that he took one around this time last year. It’s become part of his presidential duties, it seems.
It wouldn’t be surprising if he went this time not only to do some in-person due diligence on Roki Sasaki’s performance, but also to show a level of seriousness and respect, and probably also to look at some other players in the NPB. Sasaki is the biggest name right now, but obviously we know other talented players come over from Japan more or less every year now. I like that this is a regular practice for Hoyer.
Sasaki, 22, has been a superstar in Japan for several years now, with a longstanding assumption that he would eventually make the jump to the States. The questions about timing are tied primarily to the international free agency rules that would dramatically limit his (and his NPB team’s) earning potential if he came over before he turns 25.
Much more on Sasaki here, and on the questions about when he’ll come over.
