The Los Angeles Dodgers are officially one of two finalists for Roki Sasaki after the right-hander informed the San Diego Padres that they were no longer in the running.
In response, the Padres began spending their international bonus pool money elsewhere, all but guaranteeing that it will come down to the Dodgers or Blue Jays for who Sasaki will sign with.
All three teams were granted a second meeting with Sasaki and the Dodgers were granted the last audience with him. And unlike the first time they spoke with Sasaki, the Dodgers had the opportunity to include several of their star players in the pitch.
Tyler Glasnow was not one of the players present for the second meeting, but he did have the chance for a brief conversation with Sasaki over the phone, according to his appearance on Foul Territory:
“I was not there. I don’t even know where I was. When was this meeting? Give me the details. I’m in Tampa. I would’ve gone, but I think they’re probably covered.
“I talked to him on the phone. We have the same agent. I was asking him and just shooting the s—. Kind of being like, ‘You should come to the Dodgers,’ and all that stuff. He’s relatively quiet and it was a pretty quick phone call so I wasn’t expecting to get too much out of it. …
“It was, like, an in-passing phone call. I called my agent and he was like, ‘Oh, I’m with Roki. I was like, ‘Oh, I’ll say what’s up.’ Hello, hi, goodbye. Very quick hello, goodbye.”
In addition to the phone call, Glasnow also sent a message of some kind to Sasaki where he made a more comprehensive pitch to the Japanese phenom. In his message, Glasnow detailed all of the advantages that come with playing for the Dodgers and specifically how they develop their pitchers:
“I sent him a thing, I was like, ‘I haven’t played for the other two organizations (Blue Jays and Padres) but if one of your main goals is to become the best pitcher you can possibly be, development-wise, scouting report-wise and all that stuff, I was like, this is the place for you.’ He still has to come up through arb-free agency thing. If your motivation, whether it’s money or winning, this is the best place to grow as a baseball player. That was my message.”
The Blue Jays have been the biggest surprise in the Sasaki sweepstakes as the perception was that it was a two horse race between the Dodgers and Padres. Sasaki has until Jan. 23 to make a decision between his final two options.
How Dodgers’ 2025 international bonus pool compares to Blue Jays
While it money hasn’t been reported to be a main motivator for Sasaki as he signs this first contract, a more lucrative offer would not hurt either team’s chances of signing him.
The Dodgers currently have a significantly lower international bonus pool compared to the Blue Jays at $5,146,200. They are reportedly exploring the possibility of adding more funds to their bonus pool via trade.
Which is exactly what the Blue Jays have done in a trade with the Cleveland Guardians Friday morning. The deal reportedly added $2 million to their preexisting total of $6,261,600.
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