Could the Brewers Be Contenders For Roki Sasaki, The 23-Year-Old Japanese Phenom?

For the second year in a row, the most sought-after pitching talent of the offseason is coming from Japan. One year after Yoshinobu Yamamoto signed the most lucrative pitcher contract in MLB history, a younger but equally exciting Japanese talent has captured the attention of baseball fans. 

Roki Sasaki’s talents justify the hype that follows him. His numbers in NPB have been unreal, posting a cumulative 2.10 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, 11.5 K/9, and 5.74 K/BB over 394 ⅓ career innings at just 23 years old. He tossed 17 consecutive perfect innings along the way, an unthinkable feat in today’s game. To make him even more appealing, he’ll follow in Shohei Ohtani's footsteps by choosing the path of a typical international amateur free agent prospect rather than an established superstar. Because he’s being posted before turning 25, the team that signs him will pay him a modest signing bonus from the team’s international bonus pool, followed by league minimum before he hits arbitration and follows the traditional free agent service time restrictions. In other words, for the price of an average MLB contract, one lucky team will get a 6’2” power pitcher with a triple-digit fastball, physics-defying splitter, wicked slider, and full team control. 

This naturally led many to believe he would end up at a big market team, preferably one with a competitive roster and World Series aspirations. To many, he’ll inevitably find himself beside his Samurai Japan teammates Yamamoto and Ohtani on the Dodgers. Still, new information has suggested that he might prefer playing for a sleepier, cozier town like Milwaukee.

First of all, the most common reason to sign with a big market team is that they tend to have bigger pockets, but with all of the financial restrictions on their contract, every team will be limited to the same price. Second, sources stated that Sasaki has strongly disliked the pressure of major media markets, namely the Japanese tabloids that have treated him unfairly for the past two years of his stardom. Third, he has emphasized the importance of joining a competitive roster and being part of a strong developmental program. Thus, any small market team with a knack for getting the best out of their arm talent seems to be a strong fit for his preferences. Sound familiar?

Milwaukee is far from a podunk village, but the Brewers might as well be located in Yuba compared to Los Angeles and New York. The press is rarely as critical of players and tends to provide a fair analysis of things, satisfying his first condition. Second, and perhaps most importantly, few organizations have excelled at pitching development to the extent the Brewers have. Time and time again, the team has taken undervalued assets and turned things around. Tobias Myers, Aaron Civale, Jared Koenig, and Bryan Hudson are just a few examples from this season alone. Since 2019, the Brewers’ starters have a combined ERA of 3.87, which is fourth in MLB, and they’ve done so without a single major free-agent pitcher signing, something only the Rays have done better. 

Few teams marry great pitching development with a laidback media environment, and perhaps none have a better combination than the Brewers. The front office hasn’t been as active in signing Japanese players as some other teams around the league. Still, with these unique conditions and the seemingly unlimited upside of Sasaki, he could be the first player to buck the trend.