Fantasy baseball: What to expect from Roki Sasaki - ESPN

The incoming class of 2025 is headlined by two potentially front-line pitchers from Japan and a hitter from the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO). Roki Sasaki, who just signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, has rightfully received the most attention and could potentially have a huge fantasy impact for years to come. The other two are Tomoyuki Sugano, who signed a one-year, $13 million contract with the Baltimore Orioles, and Hyeseong Kim, an infielder who signed for three years and $12.5 million with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Should we expect this class to be as impactful as last season, when MLB experienced one of its largest-ever influx of players from Asia? 2024 was highlighted by Yoshinobu Yamamoto signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers and joining Shohei Ohtani, who had inked a free agent deal with the club just a few weeks earlier. Other notable additions from Japan were Shota Imanaga by the Cubs, Yuki Matsui by the Padres and Naoyuki Uwasawa by the Tampa Bay Rays. Those coming over from South Korea included Jung Hoo Lee, who signed with the San Francisco Giants, and Woo-Suk Go, who joined the Padres but spent 2024 toiling in the minors.

Let's dive into the numbers and see what fantasy managers should reasonably expect from these new entries into the player pool.

Sasaki is a 23-year-old right-hander, widely considered to be the best pitcher in Japan. He spent the past four seasons with the Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

With the Chiba Lotte Marines beginning the posting process of Roki Sasaki to MLB, take a look at some of his impressive stats in Japan.

Sasaki is classified as an international amateur because he's yet to turn 25 years old. As such, MLB clubs are confined to paying him from