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The Boston Red Sox have already added two impact starters to their rotation this offseason as well as another who could return from an injury in the second half of the season, but they’re not done looking for upgrades.
Japanese pitching sensation Roki Sasaki is the biggest name left on the market, as he’s been posted and is set to debut in the MLB in 2025. While he’s meeting with teams, the Red Sox have yet to be added to Sasaki’s schedule.
“Without getting too specific into the details of any individual pursuit, we had not been granted a meeting earlier but hope to stay involved and stay engaged,” Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow told the media earlier this week (via. MassLive’s Chris Cotillo). “Obviously, we would welcome the chance to present why we think Boston could be a great environment.
“(In what we sent over), we pitched why we feel like Boston is a great environment for NPB pitchers to come over. We can speak to our track record of success. But ultimately, it’s not our decision. We’ll obviously be ready and available to pitch the organization if we get that opportunity.”
To this point, it’s known that the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers, San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres have met with the 22-year-old. 20 teams have submitted presentations/requests for meetings.
Sasaki posted a 2.35 ERA, 1.036 WHIP and 10.5 K/9 in 111 innings for the Chiba Lotte Marines in 2024. Coming over at 22 means he’ll be signing a deal for much less than he’d get as a true free agent. Teams can offer as much as $7.5 million, which is the top of some teams’ 2025 international bonus pool.
Boston needs to offer Sasaki a contract at the higher end and sell him on the past and future of the club. But, if they’re not even meeting with him at this point, it seems unlikely that he’ll end up in a Red Sox uniform in 2025.
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