The Roki Sasaki sweepstakes reached a conclusion last week with his announcement of intending to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Sasaki chose the Dodgers over fellow finalists San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays. It’s believed Sasaki’s decision ultimately boiled down to choosing between the Blue Jays and Dodgers.
On the eve of officially signing with the Dodgers and his press conference at Dodger Stadium, Sasaki was on hand at Crypto.com Arena to watch the Los Angeles Lakers play the Washington Wizards.
Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and general manager Brandon Gomes also attended the game Tuesday night.
Roki Sasaki is at the #Lakers game tonight. LeBron just dapped him up after finishing his pregame warmup routine. @DodgerBlue1958 pic.twitter.com/YRlrZBuNaz
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) January 22, 2025
LeBron greets new LA Dodger pitcher Roki Sasaki before tip 🙌@Lakers x @Dodgers pic.twitter.com/DzYaXnFLyE
— NBA (@NBA) January 22, 2025
Sasaki met fellow Japanese native Rui Hachimura, who has often spoke fondly of Shohei Ohtani and drawing inspiration from the superstar.
Roki Sasaki received a No. 11 Lakers jersey tonight. pic.twitter.com/mpg7IvJLuZ
— Matthew Moreno (@Matthew__Moreno) January 22, 2025
Roki Sasaki got a big ovation from the #Lakers crowd.@DodgerBlue1958 pic.twitter.com/XyyqUPhUxl
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) January 22, 2025
Sasaki additionally got to meet LeBron James and received a custom No. 11 Lakers jersey, which is worn by Jaxson Hayes. That’s expected to be Sasaki’s Dodgers jersey number, with Miguel Rojas giving it up and returning to wearing No. 72.
Sasaki reportedly received a $6.5 million signing bonus, which required the Dodgers to complete separate trades to acquire more pool money. The Dodgers went into the 2025 international signing period with a bonus pool of $5,146,200, which was tied with the San Francisco Giants for the lowest total among all teams.
When is Roki Sasaki’s press conference?
Sasaki’s introductory press conference at Dodger Stadium is at 3 p.m. PT on Wednesday. Friedman and Gomes are expected to be among those in attendance.
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