Yankees Dream Target Predicted to Sign $5 Million Contract

The New York Yankees have done an excellent job in the offseason after losing Juan Soto. There’s still more than has to be done, offensively and on the mound, but the Yankees still have plenty of ammo to improve.

In a dream scenario, the Yankees would sign Japanese star Roki Sasaki. Because of Sasaki’s age, international signing rules only allow him to land a minor league deal. His contract could be as high as $7.5 million, but not every team will have the full international bonus pool of $7.5 million to give him.

David Schoenfield of ESPN predicted Sasaki would sign for just $5 million, a deal the Yankees would love to give a pitcher of his caliber.

“Under MLB’s international amateur guidelines, since Sasaki is younger than 25 years old, he can sign only a minor league deal that fits within each team’s allotted pool space. Conceivably, that means Sasaki can land anywhere since “highest bidder” doesn’t really apply here (as it didn’t when Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Angels under the same rules in 2017)…

“Sasaki has a 45-day window from when he was posted to sign a deal and has until Jan. 23 to reach an agreement. The new international signing period begins on Jan. 15, so Sasaki probably will sign in that eight-day window, giving us a month of rumors on where the hard-throwing right-hander will land,” Schoenfield wrote on December 17.

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Where Does Sasaki Want to Play?

There have been reports that Sasaki will join the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers would give him a rich culture, a former Team Japan teammate in Shohei Ohtani, and a chance to win.

Japanese players have been attracted to the West Coast due to it being closer to Japan than the Bronx, where the New York Yankees play, but his agent, Joel Wolfe of Wasserman, told reporters at the Winter Meetings that he’s willing to play for anyone.

However, Wolfe added that a small-market team could benefit him.

“Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think there’s an argument to be made that a small- or mid-market team might be more beneficial for him, as a soft landing, coming from Japan and what he’s been through and not having an enjoyable experience with the media — it might be.

“I’m not saying it will be, but I don’t know how he’s going to do it. It might be beneficial for him to be in a smaller market, but I really don’t know how he looks at it yet because I haven’t had a chance and discuss it with him [at great length].” Wolfe said in December, according to Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors.

Wolfe won’t say Sasaki only wants to play for teams like the Dodgers or Yankees, so it’s tough to put too much weight on his comments about playing for a small-market team.

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Yankees’ Pitch to Sasaki

Sasaki is expected to meet with teams over the next month, and the New York Yankees have already said they plan to do what’s needed to interest him.

Being from Japan, Sasaki could be intrigued by playing for a team with a rich history like the Yankees, perhaps their biggest selling point.

Yankees’ skipper Aaron Boone highlighted that there’s no better place to play than New York, but there will be more the front office has to sell him on.

“I think there’s no better place to do it than in New York with the pinstripes. I think we have a lot to offer him in not only his development, but I think it’s clear we’re talking about a potentially dominant major league starting pitcher,” Boone said on December 10, according to Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News.

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