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Giants general manager Zack Minasian announced
during a news conference Monday to introduce Justin Verlander
that San Francisco no longer was in contention.
Sasaki's decision to eliminate the Yankees and Rangers was
disclosed to The Associated Press by people familiar with the
negotiations. They spoke on condition of anonymity because
Sasaki's intention to sign elsewhere had not been announced. The
decision regarding New York was first reported by the Yankees'
YES Network.
The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are considered the
favorites to sign the 23-year-old right-hander, with the Toronto
Blue Jays another possibility.
Under MLB’s international amateur signing rules and the posting
system between Major League Baseball and Japan's Nippon
Professional Baseball, Sasaki can sign with an MLB team during a
window starting 9 a.m. EST Wednesday and ending 5 p.m. EST on
Jan. 23.
Because Sasaki is under 25 and has not played six seasons in NPB,
he is classified as an international amateur and limited to a
minor league contract subject to international signing bonus
pools, which range from $7,555,500 to $5,146,200. Starting
Wednesday, teams may make trades to increase their signing bonus
allotment by up to 60% from their initial figure.
Sasaki’s agent, Joel Wolfe, has not publicly identified teams
under consideration. Sasaki has been said to also have met with
the New York Mets and Chicago Cubs.
Sasaki's fastball tops 100 mph. He was 10-5 with a 2.35 ERA in
18 games last year, striking out 129 hitters in 111 innings in a
season limited by shoulder inflammation. He has a 29-15 career
record with a 2.10 ERA over four injury-shortened seasons with
the Marines.
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AP Baseball Writers Stephen Hawkins and Janie McCauley
contributed to this report.
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