⚾ The MLB Thread

[blueharvest]

 

[InCali]

I'm sure that is exactly the situation Roki Sasaki wants to be dropped into.

 

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[blueharvest]

MLB Rumors: Yankees Eye Trades for Padres' Luis Arráez and Dodgers' Gavin Lux

Having already added Max Fried, Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt to their roster, the next move for the New York Yankees going into the 2025 season will…

syndication.bleacherreport.com

 

[InCali]

MLB Rumors: Yankees Eye Trades for Padres' Luis Arráez and Dodgers' Gavin Lux

Having already added Max Fried, Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt to their roster, the next move for the New York Yankees going into the 2025 season will…

syndication.bleacherreport.com

They're a little bit late if they want Lux......or they can talk to Cincy....

 

[InCali]

We're starting to hear rumblings that the San Diego lawsuit saga may be hurting the Padres chances of signing Sasaki. The lawsuit actually mentions him and ownership is being accused of setting the stage for a sale or team move out of San Diego.

Not good news for SD. From most reports, this is a low key guy who doesn't like turmoil.

 

[InCali]

Dodgers avoid arbitration and sign

Evan Phillips (3.62 ERA)
Brusdar Graterol (2.45 ERA)
Anthony Banda (3.08 ERA)
Michael Kopech (1.13 ERA)

In addition, they also have Blake Treinan (1.93 ERA) and Alex Vesia (1.76 ERA) under contract. Except for Daniel Hudson (retiring), they basically have the entire bullpen that saved their asses last year. Their relief pitching will also be bolstered by a very deep starting rotation (unless there are a lot of injuries again).

This is a very solid bullpen. While pitchers have up and down years, most of these guys have proven their worth over the last few years.

 

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[blueharvest]

MLB bans Yankee fans who interfered with Betts at World Series indefinitely

MLB has banned two fans who interfered with Dodgers star Mookie Betts during a World Series game from attending any games at big league ballparks

www.theguardian.com

 

[InCali]

The Dodgers aren't talking, but seem pretty confident that they're going to land Sasaki. They just lost one of their high value international free agents (1.1M and another at 400K) because they asked him to delay signing until 2026.

Latest Dodgers international moves hint they’re getting close to good Roki Sasaki news

As the Los Angeles Dodgers prepare to offer Roki Sasaki a contract when the international signing period opens Jan. 15, they certainly seem confident that the J

dodgersway.com

 

[TheBatman22]

Roki was a want, not a need, for the Mets. We don't need him in our starting rotation and bullpen. I look forward to Juan Soto and the boys scoring lopsided numbers against him! He made a mistake rejecting the Mets, but it's his loss for rejecting an MLB team that developed some of the best pitchers in baseball history! On the positive side, David Wright is my all-time favorite met player! He was a class act. David will be inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame and is getting his number retired in a little over 7 months in a packed stadium. Tickets are selling like crazy, and that's a good thing we got to sign Pete Alonso or trade for Vladimir and lock down $14 years of 450 million!

 

[InCali]

Roki was a want, not a need, for the Mets. We don't need him in our starting rotation and bullpen. I look forward to Juan Soto and the boys scoring lopsided numbers against him! He made a mistake rejecting the Mets, but it's his loss for rejecting an MLB team that developed some of the best pitchers in baseball history! On the positive side, David Wright is my all-time favorite met player! He was a class act. David will be inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame and is getting his number retired in a little over 7 months in a packed stadium. Tickets are selling like crazy, and that's a good thing we got to sign Pete Alonso or trade for Vladimir and lock down $14 years of 450 million!


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Wright was one of the really good guys and someone that anyone would want on their team. I hadn't heard that Sasaki had eliminated anyone, but anyone would want that guy. He will probably help any team he's on. Barring injuries, I think the Dodgers probably "need" him the least, but want him in a big way because he's inexpensive and has a very, very high ceiling. Time is getting short and we'll soon know where he goes. Pitching is the most determinant position in MLB and throwing out yet another quality pitcher is the best thing you can do if you want to win.

 

[InCali]

So it looks like Sasaki has narrowed it down to LA, SD, and Toronto. Toronto is a fine organization, but were a late entry and I don't see him signing there. It appears we're back where we started with LA and SD being the main contenders. IMO, the Dodgers are the better long term solution if you want to win because they have most of their marquee players locked down to long term contracts and the Padres have a couple of their better starters coming into free agency after next year. They've also been upfront about trying to stay under the luxury threshold. How Sasaki feels about that is anyone's guess. There's also some turnoil in the Padres leadership although I"m sure the Padres braintrust downplayed that when they met with him last weekend.

I think we'll know by the end of the week. If we hear about another meeting with the Dodgers, I think that'll be it.

Let's be clear though, the Padres need Sasaki much, much more than the Dodgers do. If he signs with SD, they "could" make it a horserace. If he signs with the Dodgers, it's going to be very tough for SD to compete. I've also been hearing rumors about the Dodgers trading for Sonny Gray of the Cards (a very decent pitcher) for a couple of prospects. Gray has 2 years at $25M left on his contract and a no trade clause, but it's thought he would waive that to go to the Dodgers.

 

[InCali]

This just came in within the last couple of hours.

Sasaki is meeting with the Dodgers again AND with their star players. He has previously asked that no players be present at the meetings.

 

[blueharvest]

 

[InCali]

Did the Onion post this or has Nick been sampling the goods at the local herb store? I mean, Jose is a good player, but he didn't even appear in 90 games. The Dodgers might not have won the WS without Ohtani's bat in the lineup. His presence in the lineup helps those batting in front of him and his on base steal potential helped those behind him.

That's one of the most absurd takes I've ever heard......Maybe Nick is working on his comedy chops in order to make some money after his baseball career is over.

 

[InCali]

I "think" the fact that the Dodgers met with Sasaki last (yesterday and the day before he could sign) bodes well for their chances to sign him. The very next day (today), the Dodgers are searching high and low for trades to increase their international pool money. I don't think they'd be doing that if there wasn't a plan in place to sign Roki. I could be wrong, but the tea leaves look like they are starting to align (sorry for the mixed metaphor, but I like to do that). Other teams are going to see this as an opportunity to squeeze the Dodgers and they will. LOL

Dodgers Discussing Multiple Trades to Add International Bonus Pool Money for Roki Sasaki: Report

The Los Angeles Dodgers have had exploratory trade talks as they look to add international bonus pool money for Roki Sasaki.

dodgersnation.com

 

[blueharvest]

I "think" the fact that the Dodgers met with Sasaki last (yesterday and the day before he could sign) bodes well for their chances to sign him. The very next day (today), the Dodgers are searching high and low for trades to increase their international pool money. I don't think they'd be doing that if there wasn't a plan in place to sign Roki. I could be wrong, but the tea leaves look like they are starting to align (sorry for the mixed metaphor, but I like to do that). Other teams are going to see this as an opportunity to squeeze the Dodgers and they will. LOL

Dodgers Discussing Multiple Trades to Add International Bonus Pool Money for Roki Sasaki: Report

The Los Angeles Dodgers have had exploratory trade talks as they look to add international bonus pool money for Roki Sasaki.

dodgersnation.com

I'm guessing he'll either go to the Dodgers or Padres in the end. But, like you said, it'll definitely cost the Dodgers to sign a player like him.

 

[InCali]

I'm guessing he'll either go to the Dodgers or Padres in the end. But, like you said, it'll definitely cost the Dodgers to sign a player like him.

Yeah. I think there's barely any doubt about it. You can never tell what's going on in someone's mind, but if I had to bet, I'd give the Dodgers about a 70% chance, SD about 30%, and the Jays only the slimmest chance. I'd give the Padres a slightly better odds because they have a few more bucks, but I think the management chaos in SD (team is being sued by former owner's widow) has a chance of hurting them.

The thing is that the teams are limited to their bonus pool money and SD has about 1M more so the Dodgers are trying to up that by trades (IIRC they can add 60% of what they have). So the Dodgers could conceivably get to 8M+ and the Padres closer to the 10M range. Here's the rub.....the other teams KNOW the teams are looking to add to the bonus pool so they are both at a low leverage situation. The teams being called are in the driver's seat and will use their leverage to squeak out every advantage they can. The fact that the Padres are looking for money also probably means they don't think they're out of the running.

It's sort of like if an NFL team has two high priced QBs and everyone knows they can't keep both of them. Other teams get a bargain trade rate for the QB.

 

[blueharvest]

 

[InCali]

Dude was awesome. I am most impressed by him using self deprecating humor (see my signature) and parlaying it into a very, very successful broadcasting career. Dude had a great sense of humor.

Good work buddy. RIP

 

[InCali]

It looks like the Padres are signing 2 high profile international free agents to contracts in the millions. Given that Sasaki's bonus comes from that pool, the Padres appear to be out of the running. I think news of his signing breaks today.

Padres Sign Two Dominican Prospects, May Be Out On Sasaki

The Padres are finalizing deals with a pair of Dominican prospects and could be out of the Roki Sasaki race. Read more at MLB Trade Rumors.

www.mlbtraderumors.com

EDIT: Blue Jays get extra $2M in bonus pool money by making a trade with Cleveland. Their Bonus pool is now up over $8M compared to Dodgers $5.1M. Toronto trying to make things interesting. If, however, Sasaki doesn't sign with them, they are on the hook for an extra $12M for each of the next two years for a player who probably won't play. Big gamble.....

 

[InCali]

Roki Sasaki is signing with the Dodgers. Not a big surprise to anyone, but probably not best for baseball. I was actually kind of hoping he’d go with the Jays, but can understand why he picked the Dodgers. They have a great farm system player development program and go all in to win. That pitching lineup is gonna be murder next year.

EDIT: They are showing Sasaki pitching in the World Baseball Classic on ESPN. LOL

 

[blueharvest]

Roki Sasaki is signing with the Dodgers. Not a big surprise to anyone, but probably not best for baseball. I was actually kind of hoping he’d go with the Jays, but can understand why he picked the Dodgers. They have a great farm system player development program and go all in to win. That pitching lineup is gonna be murder next year.

EDIT: They are showing Sasaki pitching in the World Baseball Classic on ESPN. LOL

I'm guessing the Dodgers will be favorites to win the World Series next year with Sasaki joining the team.

 

[blueharvest]