Roki Sasaki, the pitching phenom who has captivated baseball scouts since his high school days, has made his long-awaited decision—and it’s a big one! The 23-year-old Japanese ace took to Instagram on Friday to announce that he will be joining the Los Angeles Dodgers in what he called a ‘very difficult decision’. However, the young flamethrower is certain that he will know he made the right decision when he looks back on his career. 

After overcoming fierce competition from the Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres, the Dodgers, who were long regarded as the favorites to acquire Sasaki, have finally formally clinched the deal. Sasaki’s explosive fastball and incredible splitter could soon make him the focal point of Los Angeles’ future. However, one insider believes that other teams will ask the MLB to look into this signing despite the amazing news.

MLB Commissioner’s office to investigate the Roki Sasaki deal? 

As if Roki Sasaki’s decision wasn’t already one of the most buzzworthy moments of the off-season, now, there’s talk of controversy surrounding his signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Some teams around the league believed a pre-existing agreement was in place between the Dodgers and Sasaki, fueling speculation that this may have been more than just a straightforward decision. Now, according to Jim Bowden, “There were several front offices that believed there was a pre-cut deal between the Dodgers and Roki Sasaki.”

Did the Dodgers have an edge all along? We do not know. But Bowden’s logic was that there were also reports that Sasaki would choose a small-market team due to the media attention. Sasaki did not like the media frenzy back in Japan. There were also whispers that L.A. as a destination for Sasaki would not work as all the spotlight would be taken up by Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. “There were all these reasons to defend why there wasn’t a pre-cut deal. Which works, as long as you don’t end up signing with the Dodgers!” Bowden was told by many front offices that this would happen, and while he didn’t believe them then, he believes it now. 

How Los Angeles Dodgers landed their latest Japanese player

In addition to winning the Roki Sasaki sweepstakes, the Los Angeles Dodgers became resourceful and mastered the system. Sasaki will sign what is essentially a minor league deal because he is under 25 and played in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball for fewer than six seasons. This implies that he will be paid the minimum pay in the major leagues for his first three seasons, with the chance of being optioned to the minor leagues, just like a draft pick. But the Dodgers wanted to maximize their little international bonus pool, which began at about $5.1 million. 

 Despite being at the bottom of the spectrum, they managed to get the much-sought-after Sasaki by trading minor league outfielders Dylan Campbell and Arnaldo Lantigua to the Reds and Phillies, respectively, in exchange for additional bonus pool funds. The Dodgers will give Sasaki a signing bonus of $6.5 million, which is about $2 million less than the Blue Jays were willing to give.

The club believed they had a hold on Shohei Ohtani during the previous offseason, but you know who won. This winter, the crew had their sights set on Juan Soto, only to watch him ink the biggest contract in baseball history with the New York Mets. Now, they’ve been edged out by the Dodgers again, as Sasaki picks L.A. over Toronto. The San Diego Padres, however, may be the team most affected by Sasaki’s choice.

In addition to losing to the Dodgers in a fiercely contested National League Division Series the previous season, they have been silent this offseason as their opponents continue to bolster their team. Given their relationship with Sasaki’s idol, Yu Darvish, the Padres have long desired Sasaki. But now that they need reinforcements for their rotation and an ownership battle is imminent, the team will need to go outside the box for their next course of action.