Japanese professional baseball team Chiba Lotte Marines Sasaki (24) has been mentioned as the most talked-about player in the Major League Stove League in the winter of 2025.
Major League Baseball's official media MLB.com said on the 3rd (Korea time), "The 2024 season has passed, but the baseball offseason is still ongoing. In fact, spring camp will begin next month, but there are still hot stove league tasks that need to be solved. As the league's front offices began to work again after the holiday, we asked the MLB.com press group for seven of the most exciting stories to pay attention to in the coming days," pointing to the remaining points to watch for in the stove league.메이저놀이터
The first player mentioned was Rocky Sasaki who has yet to decide his destination. Sasaki is the best ace in Japan with 29 wins and 15 losses and an earned run average of 2.10 in 64 games (394 ⅔ innings). He became the youngest player to play a perfect game in Japanese pro baseball in 2022, becoming the ace in national baseball. His fastballs with speeds of over 160 kilometers per hour and sharp splitter are said to be effective even in the Major League right now.
Sasaki, who wanted to play in the Major League last winter but was rejected by his team for lack of contributions, failed to meet the stipulated innings last season as well, with 10 wins, 5 losses and an ERA of 2.35 in 18 games (111 innings). There are also concerns over his injury as he has never met the stipulated innings so far.
Nonetheless, there are a flurry of Major League teams that want Sasaki. As Sasaki has not yet turned 25, she is only allowed to sign an international amateur contract with a Major League club under the CBA. Due to the regulation, Sasaki's maximum contract size is expected to be limited to around 1 million U.S. dollars. Any team that is Sasaki's talent can invest freely. Joel Wolf, Sasaki's agent, said that 20 Major League teams have shown interest in Sasaki.
"The biggest question for the new year is as follows. Where will Sasaki sign?" MLB.com asked, noting his whereabouts. "These opportunities don't come often. Sasaki is a 24-year-old promising pitcher whose maximum potential is the "world's best pitcher" with 100 miles (160.9 kilometers) of fastball and destructive splitter. And every team has a chance to recruit him," he said, explaining why Sasaki's destination is drawing attention.
Sasaki is likely to sign a contract after the 15th, when the international amateur bonus pool will be initialized as of this year. MLB.com said, "Agent Wolf has submitted a presentation in hopes of recruiting Sasaki. Sasaki is known to have met with at least seven teams, including the Mets, Yankees, Dodgers, Cubs, Rangers, Giants and Padres. Since Sasaki was posted, the Dodgers and Padres have been mentioned as the most likely candidates."
After meeting with major league teams in the U.S. and returning to Japan, Sasaki could fly back to the U.S. and meet one or two more teams before making a final decision. "Lucky teams can recruit one of the world's most talented young pitchers. However, many teams want Sasaki, so we have to wait and see," MLB.com said.