Did you think the off-season drama was just about over? Apparently no! Even as spring training is approaching, one important off-season business still needs to be settled. Roki Sasaki! Where would the Japanese pitching phenom land? It’s a question many are scratching their heads over. Because money is not the selling point here, almost any team has the chance to clinch him. Now, initially, 20-odd teams were interested; now, it seems like seven are seriously contending for him.

The San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers are considered frontrunners. But nothing is set in stone. The 23-year-old is said to be looking for a team that could garner his development. It doesn’t need to be a bright and media attention-heavy club. Rather, he would prefer, according to his agent, a small or medium one. Dodgers are no small team, but even then, they are heavy on their pursuit. And they recently made a bold move of relocating $1.5 million to make space for Roki Sasaki, showing their seriousness.

Dodgers clear space for Roki Sasaki

If Sasaki were a free agent, the Dodgers would have bid some crazy amount, maybe some deferred, and signed Sasaki right away. But he is subject to the international bonus pool, so Los Angeles doesn’t have that financial edge here. But even then, they are trying their best to make intentional use of their international bonus pool money. They recently, according to Francys Romero, have brought back two of their biggest bonus offers for this year’s signing period.

The LA Dodgers have brought back two offers from shortstop Darrel Morel of the Dominican Republic ($1.1M) and outfielder Orlando Patino from Venezuela ($400,000). Now, for Sasaki, money might not be the only deciding factor, but because this is what he will initially be getting in MLB, he will be looking at those numbers for sure.

Right now the Dodgers have $5.1 million available in their international bonus pool out of a maximum of over $7.5 million. So they are trying to squeeze every dollar to make a competitive offer to Sasaki. But waiting for him can be a risk. For example, Morel quickly signed with the Pirates for more than what the Dodgers locked him for. So what if the Sasaki deal doesn’t work out? They not only lose him but Morel is also gone! For sure, it’s a calculated risk, but they seem to be confident.

A surprise contender for the Sasaki sweepstakes 

The race for Roki Sasaki has several teams in the mix, but there is one dark horse who no one saw coming—the Seattle Mariners. Now it’s unclear which teams have met with the pitching star, but MLB insider Jon Morosi recently highlighted that the Mariners are a team to watch out for. Because much like the Dodgers, they also have a connection to Japan. Plus, they have a track record of developing talent in MLB, which Sasaki is looking for. So they could make a perfect pitch to Sasaki.

The Seattle Mariners had Ichiro Suzuki, MLB’s first Japanese-born position player. He was a 10-time All-Star and also an AL MVP. He was and still is the icon for many Japanese players growing up. Even beyond Ichiro, Seattle has developed Hall of Fame talents like Ken Griffey Jr. and also Alex Rodriguez. Moreover, given that Sasaki wants a low-key team sans much media attention, they seem a good landing spot. However, the Dodgers also have the same history of developing stars.

The Dodgers, in fact, have a little more edge because it’s pitching-specific. Since Mark Prior took over as pitching coach, they have been known to be the place to develop top pitchers. Right now the Dodgers do seem strong enough. But nothing is guaranteed, right? Thoughts?