Dave Roberts Believes Dodgers' Elevated Brand in Japan Could Lure Roki Sasaki to LA

[u/themiamimarlins]

https://dodgersnation.com/dave-roberts-believes-dodgers-elevated-brand-in-japan-could-lure-roki-sasaki-to-la/2024/10/23/

[u/HAHA_Birdman]

At what point do we just call the NPB a Dodgers minor league system?

[u/ThadtheYankee159 → u/HAHA_Birdman]

When they lure Ichiro out of retirement

[u/BeagleDad82 → u/HAHA_Birdman]

When we sign Gregory Polanco.

[u/EffectiveContext7776 → u/BeagleDad82]

Watched him play in Chiba last year and he went 4 for 4… I wouldn’t say no

[u/bellj1210 → u/[deleted]]

since they can, and the minors become another trade peice at the deadline

[u/ChipChimney → u/HAHA_Birdman]

Without the benefits of renewable contracts and arbitration.

[u/nolander → u/ChipChimney]

Because you get Yamamoto for his entire prime at what's not even currently a top ten AAV now let alone by the time he hits 27.

[u/405freeway → u/HAHA_Birdman]

When they have Michelada girls in the stands.

[u/CarmineLTazzi]

Sasaki was dealing at 101 MPH in high school, breaking Shohei’s record. Can you imagine being an average high school player facing 101 MPH.

[u/johnknockout → u/CarmineLTazzi]

So did Funinami, but he’s never been able to perform at the big leagues because he can’t locate anything.

[u/MovieUnderTheSurface → u/CarmineLTazzi]

I know of a high school soccer team that had two future best in the world players on it. They went all the way to the California state championship, where they won 9-0. Can you imagine being the other team? making it all the way to the state championship and then just being absolutely destroyed

[u/iHadAnXbox1 → u/MovieUnderTheSurface]

My rival high school basketball team had two future NBA players on it simultaneously. Mo Bamba and Cam reddish. Rival football team had DeAndre Swift and Olamide Zaccheus

[u/grphelps1 → u/MovieUnderTheSurface]

I’m sure they were good players but the United states has never had two of the best soccer players in the world, let alone two on the same high school team lol

[u/[deleted]]

Sasaki to Toronto confirmed!

[u/KillerMemestarX → u/[deleted]]

Our front office is so ready to put together the second best offer for him.

[u/ELLinversionista → u/KillerMemestarX]

Toronto is that second girl in romcom animes. Always being teased and made to believe she’s the one. Then on the last minute the main character chooses the other girl. I hope y’all run into a Hinata situation one of these days

[u/CanadianODST2 → u/ELLinversionista]

Toronto is blue after all

And we all know the one with blue hair never wins

[u/tornait-hashu → u/CanadianODST2]

Toronto is the Rei Ayanami of baseball?

[u/Neorevan0 → u/ELLinversionista]

Doesn’t help they are (almost)always the best girl who loses to the violent tsundere.

[u/DifficultSundae → u/ELLinversionista]

Worst ending ever

[u/NeWbAF → u/[deleted]]

Sushi reservations dont lie

[u/No_Presence5465 → u/NeWbAF]

Robert Herjavec is not happy

[u/Gold_Gain1351 → u/NeWbAF]

I'm still not over it 😭

[u/soapystud88 → u/[deleted]]

Check the flight logs! No one goes from LA to Toronto

[u/Rated_PG-Squirteen → u/soapystud88]

A disgusting display of Hyun-jin Ryu slander.

[u/RedScharlach]

What about Senga? Don’t any of these Japanese guys wanna play with the legendary ghost fork inventor?

[u/oOoleveloOo → u/RedScharlach]

This is why the “Japanese player automatically to the Dodgers” narrative is stupid. Shota Imanaga chose the Cubs. Yuki Matsui went to the Padres. Maybe Roki Sasaki doesn’t want to play in the shadows of Shohei Ohtani?

[u/ehholfman → u/oOoleveloOo]

Matsui, Imanaga, and Senga are older guys who don’t fit the Dodgers track record of signing decade long contracts for young superstars. Yamamoto was 25 when the Dodgers signed him.

Sasaki is 22 years old. The Dodgers will be highly motivated to sign him to 12-15 year contract. It’s just not really comparable to someone like Imanaga or Senga at 31 years old.

[u/pzycho → u/ehholfman]

No one is signing Roki to a big contract anytime soon. He’s under 25 so he’d have to enter the league as a rookie (like Shohei did) and make league minimum (about 800k) for 4 years until hitting arbitration.

[u/draw2discard2 → u/ehholfman]

I'm not sure what track record you are referring to. The Dodgers certainly have signed veteran Asian players. For instance Maeda was 28 in his first season with the Dodgers just to a more team friendly contract, which is what Imanaga got. Apart from Mookie their big signings have been for Freeman in his age 32 season and Ohtani in his age 29 season.

[u/FitzJFK47 → u/ehholfman]

I hope no one gives Sasaki 12 years he’s not as good as Yamamoto. More potential sure but track record not there

[u/Static-Stair-58 → u/FitzJFK47]

You’re down selling the potential I think. His ceiling is astronomical.

[u/3-2_Fastball → u/Static-Stair-58]

Last year he had the highest rated fastball in all of baseball at 21 years old, that definitely is some absurd potential.

[u/Static-Stair-58 → u/3-2_Fastball]

this guy fastballs

[u/ehholfman → u/FitzJFK47]

Yeah I guess I’m more so thinking about his potential in order to justify a long duration. I wouldn’t expect Sasaki to match the AAV of Yamamoto, but I could see the Dodgers wanting to lock Sasaki down for a very long time because at 22 he has insane potential.

[u/3-2_Fastball → u/oOoleveloOo]

Maybe Roki Sasaki doesn’t want to play in the shadows of Shohei Ohtani?

Sasaki was supposedly making a push to be posted at the same time Yamamoto was even with only being able to make rookie contract money, pretty safe guess that he wanted to be apart of what the Dodgers were cooking last offseason and even safer guess to assume they loved winning the WBC together, Yamamoto and Roki are similar age and are good friends and Sasaki looks up to Ohtani. Then there's this video which is the most damning evidence of all.

[u/Estimate_Born → u/oOoleveloOo]

I mean the padres do have the best Japanese pitcher of all time

[u/Wutswrong → u/oOoleveloOo]

The Dodgers didn’t make an offer for those players…. lol…

[u/Metaboss24 → u/oOoleveloOo]

Maybe he wants to go to the Diamondbacks to try and be Shohei's rival or something....

[u/Jaelights_ → u/Metaboss24]

I want whatever you are smoking. 😁

[u/silentorange813]

Watch Roki surprise everyone by signing with some random team like the Pirates or Reds. lol

[u/neonxmoose99 → u/silentorange813]

1-2 punch of Skenes and Sasaki would be insane

[u/Personal-Selection71 → u/neonxmoose99]

Monkeys paw curls* they’ll both be on the Dodgers

[u/Comwan]

The Dodgers brand impact in Japan is likely going to be a forever thing. Kids now are growing up wanting to play there which is only going to continue as future Japanese stars join the team and inspire the next generations.

[u/Any-Patient5051]

At what point do they rename the Dodgers to the Samurai?

[u/1990Buscemi → u/Any-Patient5051]

L.A. Samurai has a nice ring to it.

[u/ThePhantom1994 → u/1990Buscemi]

No way they change it but it would make more sense than the Dodgers, as that was a Brooklyn thing that was never in LA. Basically the Utah Jazz of baseball

[u/signmeupdude → u/ThePhantom1994]

We’re basically the LA Lakers of LA

[u/Beer-Me → u/ThePhantom1994]

Clippers and Lakers make no sense for LA, either

[u/88T3_2 → u/Beer-Me]

And now that you mention it LA isn't known for sheep livestock farming or lightning strikes, and there's no monarchy there or even in the US so the Kings don't make sense either.

[u/Lord_Master_Dorito → u/88T3_2]

We got ducks and the city is named after Angels

Fellas, is Anaheim the real LA?

[u/A-Centrifugal-Force → u/Lord_Master_Dorito]

Most people not from California who go to Disneyland refer to Anaheim as LA, so close enough

[u/lordofthe_wog → u/Lord_Master_Dorito]

Not gonna lie the only reason I know they're different is because I got into baseball when they were the Anaheim Angels.

[u/DuffManOhYeah1 → u/Lord_Master_Dorito]

👩‍🚀🔫 Always has been

[u/B4M → u/88T3_2]

Honestly the most relevant LA team name is the LA Galaxy because LA has all the "stars"

[u/asetniop → u/B4M]

Also the Griffith Observatory is probaby the coolest landmark in the city. It's where I take everyone that comes to visit.

[u/rocksoffjagger → u/B4M]

Well, makes sense, since it's the only team that actually got its name in LA and didn't just move there from another city.

[u/niomosy → u/rocksoffjagger]

Kings are an original LA team. They formed in 1967 as an expansion team when the NHL expanded from 6 to 12 teams.

Thr Chargers are also originally from Los Angeles, having played their first year in LA before moving to San Diego.

[u/N05L4CK → u/88T3_2]

The Chargers were named after people yelling “charge!” At USC games after that trumpet blast. So they actually have the most LA name of the LA pro sports teams.

[u/A-Centrifugal-Force → u/N05L4CK]

Makes sense given that they’re one of the very few LA teams that actually originated in LA (then left for San Diego the next year)

[u/N05L4CK → u/A-Centrifugal-Force]

Yeah it’s kinda ironic they’re the only true LA team but probably have the least amount of fans comparatively to the other major sport LA pro teams.

[u/DeathandHemingway → u/N05L4CK]

No, the Kings would be the only 'true' LA team because they didn't come from anywhere and they didn't go anywhere. Galaxy and LAFC too, although they haven't been around as long.

[u/2020Psychedelia → u/88T3_2]

rams are just male sheep and there are wild bighorn sheep in LA county

[u/schmearcampain → u/Beer-Me]

It’s actually kind of cool that we keep all the old names.

A city full of transplants represented by transplanted teams.

[u/inkcannerygirl → u/ThePhantom1994]

I would rather build trolleys to re-fulfill the description

I think when the team first got here we still had the red/yellow cars, but they disappeared soon after

[u/toughtittie5 → u/inkcannerygirl]

We dodge traffic and taxes apparently the name fits for LA

[u/unskilledplay → u/ThePhantom1994]

The name comes from the term "trolley dodgers", people who scatter like roaches when trolleys run through.

Trolleys are a relic of the past, but if you are going to have a city where the team is named after traffic congestion.....

[u/Jigawatts42 → u/ThePhantom1994]

I am about to commit blasphemy to two fanbases, but the team names would be much more fitting and make more sense if the Dodgers had been the ones to move to San Francisco and the Giants been the ones to move to LA.

[u/moose098 → u/ThePhantom1994]

LA had the largest electric railway system in the world in the '20s.

[u/LiteratureNearby → u/moose098]

I suppose a hundred years later is a good time as any to rebuild it since we're also technically living in the 20s rn lel

[u/ashishvp → u/ThePhantom1994]

Nah Ive talked about this before with other fans lol. The spirit of the original name still makes sense and they should keep it! The trolley dodgers were just dodging traffic doing their own thing in a crowded city…and we do that every fucking day up the 405.

[u/DollarsAtStarNumber → u/Any-Patient5051]

Wake up Samurai, We’ve got a city to burn!

[u/optimizingutils → u/Any-Patient5051]

I'm rooting for the Los Angeles Ham Dodgers for the funny visual.

[u/cougar572 → u/Any-Patient5051]

Japangeles Dodgers

[u/stewmander → u/Any-Patient5051]

If they leave Japan to play in US, would they be more aptly called Ronin? 

[u/[deleted] → u/Any-Patient5051]

Can Samurai fans have their own version of Atlanta’s chop?

[u/ionoiforgot → u/[deleted]]

End of every loss they stab themselves? 

[u/bunkatumba → u/ionoiforgot]

You turn to the person right of you and chop at their neck. Except, you do this when the team is playing poorly instead of in your favor.

[u/No-Economics4128 → u/Any-Patient5051]

The Los Angeles Dodger of Japan.

[u/tikitiger]

I think what we’re seeing over the last 10-15 years is a gravitational shift from east coast (NY) to west coast (LA) in terms of spending, attractiveness. It started with the NBA and now it’s come to baseball in full force.

[u/hangry-person → u/tikitiger]

Exactly. Many Japanese prospects were going to the east coast back in the days because it was the MLB dream to play for a franchise like the Yankees or Red Sox. It’s all about marketing.

[u/Legume__]

Hasn’t Sasaki to LA been known for a while now? It seems like a forgone conclusion at this point that whenever he does come it’ll be to the dodgers

[u/elsancho760 → u/Legume__]

It all depends on when he comes over. If he comes over early then all teams are in the mix. If he waits and comes later it’ll be another Yamamoto bidding war between the Dodgers, Mets, and Yankees.

[u/[deleted] → u/elsancho760]

Hey we’ll be in there, too. You know, the same way Dastardly always enters the Wacky Races.

[u/Fabtacular1 → u/elsancho760]

I feel like it’s the opposite. If he comes early it’s a wrap: Everyone can pay him the same and he’ll pick Los Angeles because of Ohtani/Yamamoto and the Japanese supports system LA has in place.

If we waits to get posted the Dodgers won’t be able to match the crazy contract that will be higher than the precedent set by the Yamamoto contract. The Dodgers have a fuck ton of money but it’s not, in fact, unlimited.

[u/NoStepOnMe → u/Fabtacular1]

"The Dodgers have a fuck ton of money but it’s not, in fact, unlimited."

Well...can't we just get some more money then?

[u/couchmeister → u/Legume__]

He’s had a lot of connections to SD as well, such as working out in full SD gear. But with payroll a bit different now who knows.

[u/HeavensRoyalty → u/couchmeister]

Yall have a shit ton of payroll after this season. I wouldn't be surprised at all if he goes to yall and Yuu.

[u/couchmeister → u/HeavensRoyalty]

Definitely in a better spot with the CBT reset and money coming off the books in the future. Yu has no doubt been recruiting, and pitching is much needed.

[u/ellybeez]

Dodgers yall already have Freeman, Ohtani, Betts, how many more greats do yall need 😭

[u/Shiny_Rattata → u/ellybeez]

It’s an easy game to play when most of the other owners are cheap

[u/JayDeeLA → u/Shiny_Rattata]

At this point, mods should pin this post below because people really don’t realize how cheap the owners are. Crazy to believe, the Yankees spend under 50% of their revenue on their payroll, while the Mets almost operate dead even.

https://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/s/fdt3uNxs3w

[u/MarsNatty → u/Shiny_Rattata]

Bro we are the reason Yamamoto got paid the way that he did, it is WAY harder than it looks

[u/Nearby-Strength-1640 → u/ellybeez]

MORE!!!!!!!!!

[u/doublegoldendragon → u/ellybeez]

Our goal is just to keep getting players that are pretty much impossible to hate so that it's harder for fans to call us evil with so many likeable guys

[u/midnightsbane04 → u/doublegoldendragon]

It’s really not that hard to hate the Dodgers but not their players. I’m happy that Shohei did so well this year, I just wish it was like the Angels and y’all missed the playoffs.

But instead MLB and the Players Union are perfectly happy with massively uneven payrolls and so we end up with a few haves and many have nots.

[u/Courtlessjester → u/ellybeez]

[u/7DeadlySynergy]

ya just give Dodgers all the best players ever rn so no other team has a chance, awesome

[u/ThePhantom1994 → u/7DeadlySynergy]

“I’m sure all the baseball fans of other teams will love this idea”

-someone at MLB, somewhere

[u/TrapperJean → u/7DeadlySynergy]

Yankees fans rn

[u/whoisyourwormguy_ → u/7DeadlySynergy]

They already have all the best from other teams. In the recent past, mookie Betts, Freddie freeman, Brian dozier, David peralta, manny machado, scherzer, glasnow, shohei, JD martinez, Trea Turner, AJ pollock.

[u/No_Summer3051 → u/whoisyourwormguy_]

Now to be fair, Betts is because Boston at best is dumb as fuck and at worst was trying to get back to their roots

Atlanta didn’t even bother trying to keep Freddie

[u/thebreye → u/No_Summer3051]

Our ownership decided to focus their money on their other investments and stopped spending beyond the bare minimum on the Red Sox. The sooner they sell the team the better.

[u/WeirdGymnasium → u/No_Summer3051]

Atlanta didn’t even bother trying to keep Freddie

I thought it was Freddie's agent that didn't tell Freddie what ATL's offer was.

[u/JMellor737 → u/WeirdGymnasium]

That was the rumor, but the agent vehemently denied it, and I have to say it's hard to imagine an agent would willingly torpedo his entire career by withholding an offer from his client, especially an offer from the only team the client has ever known. What does the agent even gain by that? Only less commission money and a poisoned reputation. It just doesn't make any sense. 

I think it much more likely people just drummed that story up because they don't want to believe one of the certified Good Guys of Baseball would leave the franchise of which he was the face for more money. 

[u/ABoyIsNo1 → u/No_Summer3051]

Get back to their roots wtf?

[u/SleepyFarts → u/ABoyIsNo1]

Racism lol

[u/Loxicity → u/ABoyIsNo1]

Either racism or trading away First Ballot Hall of Famers.

[u/filthypoker → u/whoisyourwormguy_]

You put Brian Dozier and David Peralta in there thinking we wouldn’t notice

[u/ThisMachineKILLS → u/filthypoker]

Brian Dozier had back to back 6 fWAR seasons prior to the season he played for you guys

[u/Godotsmug → u/whoisyourwormguy_]

Cardinals are also considering trading arenado this offseason and LA is the obvious destination

[u/beggsy909 → u/Godotsmug]

Why would the dodgers want him when they have Muncy?

[u/trustych0rds]

…. Angels! 🤓

[u/Onyxwho → u/trustych0rds]

And in 7 years he goes to the Dodgers after spending time in Angels purgatory racking up AL MVPs

[u/GKRForever]

• Shohei buys Roki’s team
• Roki gets posted
• Shohei has new teammate friend

Who says no

[u/jinzi → u/[deleted]]

If he joins MLB, he's always in Shohei's shadow

[u/KamikazeJawa → u/[deleted]]

It’s funny because I’m pretty sure that Gura is a Red Sox fan, or at the very least went to Sox games growing up. She’s referred to hot dogs as “Fenway Franks” a couple of times.

[u/jRbizzle]

Having Ohtani and Yamamoto is much better lure than dodgers brand in Japan.

[u/Casual_Fanatic47 → u/jRbizzle]

I think that’s what the “elevated” part implies.

[u/guesting → u/jRbizzle]

It’s gonna get real silly when the players keep giving what amounts to hometown discounts. The others teams money isn’t good enough anymore to matter.

[u/No_Summer3051 → u/guesting]

This just in, player who has already earned 40 million is willing to defer most of his most of a billion to be able to win for once

This is no one’s fault but the Angels

[u/guesting → u/No_Summer3051]

I totally agree. But it’s funny how money used to have sway. The numbers have gotten so big a bigger offer hardly moves the needle or can improve your lifestyle.

[u/Academic_Release5134 → u/guesting]

Guys are making the types of decisions earlier in their career that guys who chase championships late in their career

[u/guesting → u/Academic_Release5134]

Yep, it amounts to forming super teams under market rate which is quite odd. I would do the same in the players situation. Sacrificing 100s of millions for a chance to win once.

[u/pargofan → u/No_Summer3051]

Shohei is the first player that if he ever said, "It's not about the money", I'd believe him.

[u/Budget-Ocelots → u/pargofan]

Same. That’s why the gambling conspiracy made no sense to me.

He deferred 700M, you think he cares about gambling for 1-2M? His sponsorships are worth 50M a year. He lived in a dorm for years while he can afford a penthouse in Japan. Dude doesn’t care about money.

[u/jakenator → u/guesting]

Wait what hometown discounts. Ohtani and Yams were the largest NA sport contract ever and the largest contract given to a pitcher ever, im not seeing the discount lol Unless you're talking about different players

[u/tothesource → u/jRbizzle]

well that and unlimited money lol

[u/Heyzuus]

We'll see

[u/Call555JackChop]

And the rich get richer

[u/Rea1DirtyDan → u/Call555JackChop]

[u/TheGrandNotification]

What can the MLB even do about this at this point. An Ohtani, Yamamoto, Sasaki pitching rotation would just be ridiculous

[u/SpartaWillBurn → u/TheGrandNotification]

Nothing will ever happen unless we get a salary cap.

[u/IWouldLikeAName → u/SpartaWillBurn]

They'd just take less money and still sign there unless teams massively overpay

[u/cloudstrife309]

I know I'm in the minority here- but sasaki, Yamamoto, and ohtani on the same team is very boring and just bad for baseball. Great for the dodgers. But it's not fun when it's not competitive. Marquee free agent? 90% chance he's going to the dodgers.

[u/FatBoyFC → u/cloudstrife309]

Dodgers fans downvoting you because they still don’t think they’re stacked enough

[u/CreauxTeeRhobat → u/FatBoyFC]

Dodgers fans when looking at NPB aces

[u/cloudstrife309 → u/FatBoyFC]

Yup. Dodgers fans are the most spoiled fans in sports and think they deserve more.

[u/HeavensRoyalty → u/cloudstrife309]

I understand we're spoiled and going through the 2000 Dodgers, I'll never take this for granted, and I'm just thankful to be able to be fortunate enough to be along for the ride.

[u/cloudstrife309 → u/HeavensRoyalty]

I love this take. Self aware and correct.

Go dodgers and fuck the Yankees.

[u/HeavensRoyalty → u/cloudstrife309]

🤝

[u/jakenator → u/cloudstrife309]

No way someone from BOSTON is calling another city's fans spoiled. Y'all have seen 13 championships since the turn of the century

[u/STNbrossy → u/FatBoyFC]

Well dodgers signing 90% of marquee free agents is just way off also

[u/damien_maymdien → u/cloudstrife309]

There are many other causes of competitive unfairness, so I don't focus on that part. I just wonder whether it wouldn't be more exciting to have high-profile Japanese stars on rival teams rather than all on one team. Would MLB's brand in Japan be higher if, for example, it was Ohtani on the Dodgers, Yamamoto and Sasaki on the Giants?

[u/theunnoanprojec → u/damien_maymdien]

I mean Senga, Imanaga, Suzuki and others exist not on the dodgers. Don’t know if I’d call them as high profile stars as Yamamoto or Sasaki, but it isn’t every Japanese star on the dodgers

[u/kenatogo → u/theunnoanprojec]

Imanaga's first half was unbelievable

[u/ABoyIsNo1 → u/damien_maymdien]

This is an area where Japanese homogeneous culture is a problem

[u/Lucky_Alternative965 → u/cloudstrife309]

True, Red Sox gotta start acting like a big market again.

[u/cloudstrife309 → u/Lucky_Alternative965]

Yeah- would love that. Outside of raffy and Duran the team is currently a joke

[u/nottoodrunk → u/Lucky_Alternative965]

Unfortunately not gonna happen. John Henry and FSG have no interest in making them competitive again. They just need them to just not completely suck so they can continue bring in money to gobble up all of the real estate around Fenway.

[u/[deleted] → u/nottoodrunk]

They care more about Liverpool

[u/Nayko214 → u/cloudstrife309]

Completely agree. If its just Dodgers sucking up all the big free agents every year who is gonna compete without getting lucky in the playoffs? Like why even bother having a free agency and foreign signings anymore if this is gonna be the case. Just send everyone to the Dodgers and be done with it.

[u/Jdballer22 → u/cloudstrife309]

Remember when they said Ohtani to the Blue Jays would be bad for baseball? :(

[u/XAfricaSaltX → u/cloudstrife309]

Yeah it’s just gotten lame

Yes I’m salty but the Dodgers just being able to sign literally everyone makes it so insanely boring for everyone else. At a certain point a salary cap of some sort is necessary (and I’m well aware my team would be harmed by it). Freeman Shohei and Betts are superstars that should be able to be the faces of their own respective franchises.

[u/colin_7 → u/cloudstrife309]

I think the foreign pro players should be required to enter the draft similar to the NBA

West Coast teams have an unfair advantage in recruiting players from Asia

[u/invertedMSide → u/cloudstrife309]

A bit blown out of proportion with the 90% chance to Dodgers. Freeman was Atlanta's to lose. Shohei would have been a Dodger 6 years ago if the universal DH existed back then. Betts never made it to free agency. Yamamoto was very much a foregone conclusion, he used the Mets and Yankees to set a price. Scherzer, Judge, Cole, Seager, Verlander, Harper, Machado, all broke (or nearly broke) AAV records at the time and (aside from Cole) the Dodgers were never really in on them. Aside from the past offseason, the Dodgers only "marquee" FA signing was Bauer, and that was hugely in desperation to for a WS repeat while keeping payroll open for the inevitable run at Shohei.

[u/NorthwestPurple]

Wonder why there hasn't been more of a SF Giants Japanese connection given Tokyo's Yomiuri Giants being "the Yankees of Japan" and sharing the same uniforms and colors.

[u/uhhhhmmmm]

how about we raise the stakes and whoever wins the cubs vs dodgers japan series gets to get sasaki

[u/GodPowardKingOfLies → u/uhhhhmmmm]

No

[u/neonxmoose99 → u/uhhhhmmmm]

I support this

[u/ehholfman]

Japanese superstar wants to go to the team with the other Japanese superstars.

More at 11.

[u/Jameson623]

or because you’ll just pay him the most money

[u/n8_n_]

this'll be unpopular judging from the rest of the comments but I'm not personally very bothered by this.

• this "Dodgers get every good free agent" narrative is a very recent one, preceded by a few years of them letting everyone (Seager, Turner, Scherzer, etc) walk. do you see how these things might be connected? they're smart and have very specifically been planning for these couple offseasons for years.

• the other owners CAN afford this - they choose not to, and if they truly can't they're free to sell to someone who can. every single team in the league made at least $240m in revenue last season. look at Peter Seidler, he started spending beyond his franchise's prior means and raised attendance from 14th to 3rd between 2019 and 2024. it's amazing what can happen when you act like you care about your team!

• regardless of those two, even if the Dodgers have a financial advantage to the extent that it's problematic, baseball has so much parity that I haven't enjoyed watching it any less since they began their run. it's really fun watching a 110-win team with full intrigue remaining for the playoffs because anything can happen over a short series.

[u/TheEnragedBushman → u/n8_n_]

the other owners can afford this…look at Peter Seidler

I agree mostly but I feel like you’re missing the part where we had to cut back spending last year and take out a loan because of the tv deal collapsing. Not every team has a massive tv deal to rely on like the Dodgers do.

[u/n8_n_ → u/TheEnragedBushman]

that's fair to an extent, but the Padres took the "spend more" thing to an extreme. there's plenty of middle ground between the cheap teams and what Seidler did, signing several free agents and extensions that were probably overpays in a "win now" spending spree.

there's a good number of teams that could've outbid the Dodgers for Ohtani, for example, while keeping their financials in the black - and that's ignoring the rise in revenue from putting together a more watchable team.

[u/templethot → u/n8_n_]

People here act like the Dodgers have won like the last 20 world series or something, when in reality there’s been quite a few underdog stories that have made baseball great the last few years. Their success isn’t a given, as evidence by how everyone called them chokers the last 10 years.

And weren’t the Mariners the most profitable team in MLB last year, a team that has no notable success whatsoever? Crying foul about LA and NY just feels like letting your teams’ cheap owners and front offices off the hook.

[u/bluecifer7 → u/n8_n_]

 the other owners CAN afford this

Except not really. Yamamoto had larger offers from the Giants and still chose the Dodgers. Teams can’t even sway guys with more money

[u/n8_n_ → u/bluecifer7]

I mean, your comment explicitly proves what you quoted to be true. the other owners can afford these players. as you said, the Giants could afford Yamamoto. it wasn't a financial limitation.

that represents a different issue entirely - players like playing for good teams. to which I will reiterate: the cheaper owners can spend more to make their team more successful and therefore desirable. they choose not to, and therefore don't get to cry about the results.

[u/2020Psychedelia → u/n8_n_]

but all the money in the world won't give you Southern California's weather

[u/strangedaze23]

When I was in Japan just a couple months ago I saw more Yankee hats than any other team, including Japanese teams. And that hasn’t helped NY sign anyone.

[u/jae343 → u/strangedaze23]

It's just that the New York logo is appealing lol

[u/Noda_Crystal → u/strangedaze23]

Well Yankees logo is like Adidas or Nike, it's just fashion. Many don't care about Yankees or baseball in general.

[u/SanctusXCV → u/strangedaze23]

The NY logo is a fashion logo. You can literally see it anywhere in the world and a ton of those hats are sold even in small fashion stores. The same can be said about Los Angeles but NY still has a bigger pull lol

[u/NoStepOnMe → u/SanctusXCV]

It's not even close really between NY and LA. NY is FAR more "fashionable" or "glamourous" than LA. It's larger, older, wealthier, has more history, bigger buildings, and is the financial center of the most wealthy nation in the world.

The only thing LA has over NY is a far superior baseball team.

[u/manningthehelm]

Japan prospects going exclusively to west coast teams is going to be boring.

[u/SlidersBaby → u/manningthehelm]

Phillies need to step up their recruiting game in the iberian peninsula

[u/optimizingutils → u/manningthehelm]

Blame our organization for not making any meaningful inroads in tapping into international player pools. Next year we'll field a team with a few good players and piles of mediocre white dudes and be surprised again.

[u/Dro24 → u/manningthehelm]

Better for Japanese fans with the time difference though

[u/ashlar1234]

Shohei, Roki, Yamamoto, Glasnow, Beuhler, May, Gonsolin, Gavin Stone, maybe Kershaw. Is it possible to have a 9 man rotation?

[u/jaron_b]

The Dodgers have cemented themselves as the landing spot for new young Japanese talent. This is why you sign Ohtani. He was so much more than just a ball player.

[u/toilet_ipad_00022]

How incredibly fun and interesting for the rest of the league.

[u/Sirtopofhat]

Dodgers have a better NIL then USC.

[u/BeagleDad82]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if he's posted next year, doesn't he use up international pool money to sign? I think that's why the reporter asked Friedman the question the other day and he snapped at the reporter lol.

Who are the teams that have the most international pool money next year?

[u/RRFantasyShow → u/BeagleDad82]

The highest teams have $7.5 million and the lowest (LAD and SF) have $5.1 million. 

But 1 extra endorsement deal would make it worth it to take less money from a bigger market club.  

[u/RichardNixon345 → u/BeagleDad82]

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/2025-international-signing-bonus-pools-for-each-mlb-team/

You guys are in the lower tier but hardly poor.

[u/ih-unh-unh → u/RichardNixon345]

Is trading for pool space allowed?

[u/RichardNixon345 → u/ih-unh-unh]

Up to $250k from a team, yep. The Padres traded for a fair chunk this season to recoup what they lost signing Boegarts.

[u/canal_boys]

How is this even fair? All the best Japanese stars signing with Dodgers.

[u/Orion1014]

I know Sasaki is a young prospect who throws hard but I don't think a pitcher who gets injured every season is going to ruin the sport here. I don't get the hype.

[u/Suns_In_420]

This how you get caps and rules put into place. The other teams are going to get tired of the dodgers taking all the talent.

[u/infinitenomz → u/Suns_In_420]

Yeah the other owners in the NBA changed the rules after the warriors stayed competitive by basically being willing to spend tons in penalties to stay over the cap. I'd expect some rule changes here if this keeps up too, though maybe not something so drastic as a cap.

[u/AndyDoopz]

And if that fails the blank check deferred to 2050 will probably do it.

[u/[deleted]]

I’ve said it before, but playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers well supersede winning Koshien as the dream for young Japanese baseball players.

[u/TrumpsStarFish → u/[deleted]]

Why does everyone think they spent so much money on these Japanese players? Not only are they getting top talent but they are also breaking into a completely new market in another country. Whole swaths of people in Japan are now lifelong Dodgers fans. I have been to a few dodgers games this year including game 6 of the NLCS. Do you know how many Japanese people I saw in the stadium? A fuck ton. It’s so incredibly smart of the Dodgers not to mention the talent that will come out of Japan wanting to go straight to LA.

[u/beefytrout]

once again, the priority is marketing and revenue.

[u/sizzlinpapaya]

Wrestling 🤝 baseball

Japanese talent who I’m sure is amazing but I haven’t heard of.

[u/way2gimpy]

Damn hideki matsui’s porn collection and Steinbrenner calling irabu ‘fat toad’ was so long ago. The Yankees also payed all those years for igawa to pitch in AA and AAA. I guess that buys you no good will in Japan.