“Roki Sasaki is a really special talent” – Aaron Boone weighs in on Yankees’ interest in Japanese phenom

Exciting Japanese pitching talent Roki Sasaki may be on the way to Major League Baseball, and he has gotten the attention of some of the sport's biggest franchises. According to reports, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets are all looking to potentially add Sasaki to their pitching arsenal this winter.

Roki Sasaki made his debut with the Chiba Lotte Marines in 2021 and has matured into one of the NPB's most sought-after talents since. He was a part of the 2023 WBC-winning Japan team, along with recently crowned World Series champions Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Sasaki also has two NPB All-Star caps to his name, for 2022 and 2023.

With the Yankees potentially interested in Sasaki's acquisition, skipper Aaron Boone stated his opinion on the promising talent, and talked about the Yankees' chances of bringing him to the Bronx for the upcoming season.

"He (Roki Sasaki) is really gifted and very young. I think I heard today that he's right around the same age as Paul Skenes, and obviously already has done quite a bit in Japan. So, we know it's a unique and special talent, a guy with top of the rotation qualities." Boone said [0:18]

"Hopefully we're in the mix with him, but I really haven't started to have those kind of conversations even with our organization. We've been aware of him for a couple of years, I came across him at some point a couple years ago, but I certainly understand that this is a really, really special talent that's going to be coming over to major league baseball next year." Boone added [0:50]

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Dodgers favorites to land Roki Sasaki, per ex-Mets GM

Roki Sasaki's current team, the Chiba Lotte Marines, has agreed to allow the young star to leave for much less than what he would've generated in two years. This greatly sweetens the deal for MLB franchises, as whoever manages to secure his services will be doing so for a relatively cheaper fee, with Sasaki still classed as an "International amateur".

According to former New York Mets general manager Steve Phillips, all signs currently point to the Los Angeles Dodgers being that team.

"[The Marines posting Sasaki right now] Opens it up for all 30 teams, everybody can get in on this. This isn't a matter of who's got the money to afford him, it's going to be who can sell their development, their team, their franchise, how they're going to make it comfortable for him." Phillips said [1:06]

"I think that right now, the Dodgers would be the odds-on favorite [to land Sasaki]. The chance to win, you've got Yamamoto and with Ohtani there... it sure feels like it's a Dodger player to me." Phillips added [1:35]

With the Dodgers' pitching staff showing their quality in the entirety of the 2024 postseason and eventual World Series win, the rumors of Sasaki's imminent arrival will be cause for excitement for Dodgers fans, as arguably the best pitching contingent in the major leagues is set to get significantly stronger.