Dodgers win Rōki Sasaki sweepstakes, cementing status as preferred destination for NPB stars

Last December, the Dodgers' addition of Shohei Ohtani concluded one of their greatest pursuits and began another. 

"One of our goals is to have baseball fans in Japan convert to Dodger blue," president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said at Ohtani's introductory press conference, "and to have Shohei along with the rest of his teammates help grow the game and passion for Dodgers baseball all across Japan."

Weeks later, luring Yoshinobu Yamamoto furthered their cause. And on Friday, the Dodgers cemented their status as the preferred MLB destination for NPB stars and transformed their rotation into a triumvirate of Japanese pitching luminaries by winning the Rōki Sasaki sweepstakes. In a possible ode to Ohtani, Sasaki broke the news of his much-anticipated decision, which was long expected to be Los Angeles, with an Instagram post.

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While Ohtani might not be ready to pitch at the outset of the 2025 season, the Dodgers can expect Ohtani, Yamamoto and now Sasaki, three of the most gifted NPB pitchers in recent history, all on the mound for them at some point in 2025.

Unlike the 10-year, $700 million deal for Ohtani, which set an MLB record, and the 12-year, $325 million contract for Yamamoto, which set a pitching record, acquiring Sasaki didn't break the bank. The 23-year-old, who was subject to international amateur free-agent restrictions that limited him to MLB clubs' bonus pool money — this was also the case for Ohtani when he signed with the Angels in 2017 — will receive a reported $6.5 million signing bonus from the Dodgers. The contract is otherwise like any minor-league deal, meaning Sasaki is under team control