by There has been no shortage of speculation that Roki Sasaki’s decision to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers was not the result of a careful free agent process, but rather a handshake deal struck months or even years earlier.
MLB is doing its best to dispel that notion.
A day after Sasaki announced his move to the Dodgers, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reported that the league had already investigated the matter and found no evidence of wrongdoing:
According to a league official, before approving Sasaki’s posting, MLB conducted an investigation to “ensure that the protocol agreement was followed.” Another person familiar with the situation, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said the league interviewed “numerous parties” as part of its investigation but found no evidence to substantiate the rumors.
Obviously, that won’t do anything to appease the Dodgers’ biggest critics. Disgraced former MLB general manager Jim Bowden has also claimed that several teams believe there was a pre-arranged deal.
Sasaki’s agent Joel Wolfe rejected the idea during winter meetings in December, via the Times:
“There were some accusations, allegations, all of which were false and related to prearranged deals and things like that,” Wolfe said at the time. “However, MLB rightly wanted to ensure there was a fair and level playing field for everyone. Therefore, they conducted their due diligence and interviewed numerous parties in advance to ensure this was the case. And they wanted to make sure that Roki most likely – even though he would have the opportunity to commit in 24 – gives himself the best opportunity to get the best deal.”
Sasaki’s move to the Dodgers has proven to be a flashpoint for broader concerns about parity in the MLB, as only one fan base will be happy if the defending champions, who have already signed numerous hitters this offseason, make what is probably the biggest bargain in baseball will see this decade.
Due to a strange overlap between Japanese posting rules and the international free agent system, Sasaki reportedly received a signing bonus of just $6.5 million, likely less than 5% of what he would have received had he actually hit the open market would have gone. For a long time, the Dodgers were considered the favorite to sign him, while the rival San Diego Padres were considered the second favorite.
MLB hasn’t fully proven that the Sasaki deal was correct, it just hasn’t found any evidence to support the rumors of impropriety. However, it’s not like the Dodgers had to sell Sasaki privately to them either. The reason LA was always presented as the favorites was because the team just made sense.
The Dodgers won the World Series last year. They have been in the playoffs every year for the last decade. They have one of, if not the best, player development systems in the industry. With Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto they already had two Japanese stars who helped Sasaki get used to it. They already had the full attention of Sasaki’s homeland, not to mention the relative proximity. When you’re a 23-year-old phenom who knows full well a team will be interested in you, not much communication is required.
Still, proving that the Dodgers didn’t renege on the Sasaki deal is proof negative of what won’t happen. There will be criticism – some justified, some not – about how this all pans out in the foreseeable future.
