The Los Angeles Dodgers put together a full-court press to sign Roki Sasaki, landing the prized international phenom over fellow finalists Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres.
The Dodgers sold Sasaki on their ability to address a decline in his fastball velocity and with all the offerings the organization has to help him grow. But there was also the matter of what number Sasaki would wear with the Dodgers.
He coveted No. 11, which belonged to Miguel Rojas. The veteran infielder gladly gave that jersey to Sasaki and has chosen to return to No. 72.
Appearing on “The Chris Rose Rotation,” Rojas addressed the unintentionally stressful scenario of being asked by Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman about changing jersey numbers to accommodate Sasaki:
“I received a text message from our president of baseball, Andrew Friedman, late at night. It was a really weird text message saying he wanted to run something by me. When I received that message, I almost pooped my pants. I thought I was getting let go or I was getting traded. The worst came to my mind. I never thought it was going to be to have that conversation.
“It never happened to me before, to change numbers or try to give the number to someone that is older than you. I didn’t know it was going to come at this time in my career. So when I finally reached out to Andrew, he didn’t respond for another hour or two. I was just panicking, didn’t know what was going to happen, I wasn’t ready and I’m not ready to move on and not play for this team after what we accomplished last year.
“With all of that in mind, Andrew finally called me and said he wanted to give me a call to explain the situation of having the opportunity to sign Roki Sasaki, but one of the things he wanted to have is No. 11. So he told me he has the respect for me, he knows I’ve accomplished a lot in the game and all that. When he finally told me it was about a number, I told him, ‘Andrew, you should’ve just text me, Hey, I need No. 11. Let’s move forward, pick another number. We’re trying to sign this guy who can be the best pitcher coming out of Japan ever.’
“I said, ‘Bro, that’s not even a question. As long as we’re getting better and this guy feels I’m doing something for him to sign, I hope it makes his decision a little bit easier.’”
Rojas’ understanding that a move as simple as a jersey number swap could be a piece to landing a talent like Sasaki is the perfect embodiment of a team-first approach. Not only does that permeate through the Dodgers clubhouse, Rojas specifically has often emphasized needing to have that mindset.
Rojas opting to go back to No. 72 is first since his rookie year when he debuted with the Dodgers. Meanwhile, Sasaki received No. 11, the same number as his Major League idol, Yu Darvish, who’s worn it for the majority of his career.
Miguel Rojas doesn’t want gift from Roki Sasaki
Many players work out some sort of swap when giving up a jersey number for another player, like was seen with Shohei Ohtani gifting a Porsche to Joe Kelly’s wife. But Rojas said he doesn’t want a gift.
“A lot of people have been asking me what I want in return. I’m not looking for anything, to be honest with you,” Rojas said at DodgerFest.
“These number changes happen the other way around. Like, a young player has to give it up to a veteran player that has done a lot in the game. I have done a lot in the game. I don’t need anything, to be honest with you. I just want to win.”
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