CHIBA, Japan (AP) — Japanese ace Roki Sasaki will be available to Major League Baseball teams this offseason.
The Chiba Lotte Marines announced Saturday they have chosen to start the process of moving the pitcher to a big league club in North America via the posting system.
Sasaki, who turned 23 this month, is expected to become one of the most sought-after pitchers on the open market. The right-hander went 10-5 with a 2.35 ERA in 18 games this year, striking out 129 hitters in 111 innings.
Because he is younger than 25, Sasaki will be classified as an international amateur free agent subject to bonus pool limits, according to MLB rules. That means his first contract would be a minor league deal no larger than seven figures.
The Marines will receive a posting fee from the acquiring MLB team equal to 25% of the signing bonus.
When Shohei Ohtani agreed to join the Los Angeles Angels in December 2016 at age 23, he received a $2,315,000 signing bonus.
It's unclear yet when Sasaki will be posted, starting the 45-day clock for him to sign with a major league club. The 2024 international signing period ends Dec. 15 and the 2025 period opens Jan. 15.
Most teams committed most or all of their bonus pool to Latin American prospects in January. The Los Angeles Dodgers have kept the most available space left in their 2024 signing bonus pool, $2,502,500.
On the day before the World Series began, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman refused to answer a question about the amount left open, saying: “This is outrageous. You want to talk about our hitting philosophy and the player development, seriously, this is not important for right now."
Baltimore has $2,147,300 remaining, the New York Yankees $1,487,200 and San Francisco $1,247,500. The other teams have under $1 million, including Tampa Bay and Texas with no money available and eight other clubs with less than $100,000.
The last day to post a player is Dec. 15, so by waiting the Marines could extend his availability into the new signing period.
Pools this year range from Arizona at a high of $7,129,800 to Atlanta, Boston, the Chicago White Sox and the New York Mets at $5,925,000.
After the Dodgers signed Ohtani to a $700 million, 10-year contract and pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto to a $325 million, 12-year deal last December, Los Angeles won the World Series and drew a Japan-record 12.9 million average television viewers for the five games against the Yankees.
Asked during the NL Championship Series whether the success of the team’s brand in Japan could help recruit Sasaki if he became available, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said: “I hope so, absolutely. We’re thinking alike now.”
Sasaki helped Japan win the 2023 World Baseball Classic. His fastball has been clocked at 102.5 mph, and he has a 29-15 career record with a 2.10 ERA over four injury-shortened seasons with the Marines. He pitched a perfect game against the Orix Buffaloes in April 2022 — racking up 13 straight strikeouts and finishing with 19.
“Since I joined the team, the team has been listening to my thoughts about my future MLB challenge, and I am very grateful to the team for officially allowing me to post," Sasaki said in a statement posted by the Marines on the social platform X.
"There were many things that did not go well during my five years with the Marines, but I was able to get to this point by concentrating only on baseball, with the support of my teammates, staff, front office, and fans. I will do my best to work my way up from my minor contract to become the best player in the world, so that I will have no regrets in my one and only baseball career and live up to the expectations of everyone who has supported me.”
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FILE- Japan's Roki Sasaki delivers a pitch during the first inning of a World Baseball Classic game against Mexico, Monday, March 20, 2023, in Miami. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)
FILE - Roki Sasaki, of Japan pitches, during their Pool B game against the Czech Republic at the World Baseball Classic at the Tokyo Dome, Japan, Saturday, March 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)
FILE - Roki Sasaki of Japan pitches during their Pool B game against the Czech Republic at the World Baseball Classic at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, on March 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump announced that he is nominating former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe to lead the Central Intelligence Agency.
A former Republican congressman from Texas, Ratcliffe served as director of national intelligence for the final year and a half of Trump’s first term, leading the U.S. government’s spy agencies during the coronavirus pandemic.
“I look forward to John being the first person ever to serve in both of our Nation’s highest Intelligence positions,” Trump said in a statement. “He will be a fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans, while ensuring the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.”
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel and longtime friend Steven Witkoff to be a special envoy to the Middle East, Trump announced Tuesday.
Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel, and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel's interests as it wages wars against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Witkoff is a Florida real estate investor who is serving as a chair of Trump’s inaugural committee. He also spent time in the world of New York real estate, where Trump first made his mark as a public figure.
On Tuesday, Trump also named Bill McGinley, his Cabinet Secretary in his first administration, as his White House counsel.
Trump is rolling out a steady stream of appointees and nominees for his upcoming administration, working thus far at a faster pace and without as much drama as his first transition following his 2016 victory.
“Mike has been a great public servant, Governor, and Leader in Faith for many years,” Trump said in a statement. “He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him. Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East!”
Huckabee has led paid tour group visits to Israel for years, frequently advertising the trips on conservative-leaning news outlets.
David Friedman, who served as Trump's ambassador to Israel in his first term, said he was “thrilled” by Trump's selection of Huckabee.
Witkoff is also the president-elect’s golf partner and was with him when he was the target of a second assassination attempt at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, in September.
Trump's transition team did not offer details about the Middle East envoy role, but Trump, in a statement said, “Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud.”
The selection of Witkoff follows a pattern for Trump in putting people close to him in pivotal roles on the Middle East portfolio. Eight years ago he appointed his former corporate attorney Jason Greenbaltt as his special representative for international negotiations and relied on his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as his personal envoy in talks in the region.
FILE - Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., takes questions from the media, prior to laying a brick at a new housing complex in the West Bank settlement of Efrat, Aug. 1, 2018. President-elect Donald Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel. Trump said Tuesday that Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel’s interests as it wages wars against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.(AP Photo/Oded Balilty, File)
FILE - Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., takes questions from the media, prior to laying a brick at a new housing complex in the West Bank settlement of Efrat, Aug. 1, 2018. President-elect Donald Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel. Trump said Tuesday that Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel’s interests as it wages wars against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.(AP Photo/Oded Balilty, File)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump talks with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee during a roundtable at the Drexelbrook Catering & Event Center, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024, in Drexel Hill, Pa. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
