The Los Angeles Dodgers have been one of the most active teams this offseason, but they could potentially make another big addition to their roster before pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training next month.
The Dodgers are considered the frontrunner to sign Roki Sasaki, who became one of the most coveted free agents after the Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) posted him in December.
Manager Dave Roberts, who was born in Naha, Okinawa, Japan, believes the team has some unique advantages when it comes to signing players from the country.
“I think the infrastructure of Japanese speakers on the staff, Minor League staff, training staff, front office, baseball operations side of things. We really have that covered,” Roberts began.
“I think our relationship with the country itself; we’ve built a lot of relationships with Japanese players in the last 30 years. Obviously, you talk about Los Angeles, there’s little Tokyo, there’s a very good Asian — specifically Japanese — community.
“I think the weather is very conducive to sort of, not necessarily Hokkaido and northern Japan, but Tokyo and down south, the West Coast being closer to Japan. The fanbase. I think that players that come over want to win. I think we’re built to win now and for a long time.”
If the Dodgers sign Sasaki, it would mark the second consecutive offseason in which they landed a free agent from Japan. L.A. of course inked Yoshinobu Yamamoto to a record-setting 12-year, $325 million contract after he was posted by the Orix Buffaloes.
The Dodgers also signed fellow Japanese native Shohei Ohtani to a 10-year, $700 million deal last offseason, which at the time represented the largest contract in professional sports history.
Dodgers history of signing players from Japan
The Dodgers’ history of adding players from Japan dates back to 1995, when they signed Hideo Nomo to a Minor League contract that included a $2 million signing bonus.
Among other accolades, Nomo went on to become the first Japanese-born player to appear in the Majors after beginning his career with NPB.
Other Japanese players to play for the Dodgers include Yu Darvish, Hiroki Kuroda, Kenta Maeda and Takashi Saito, among others.
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