Why now?
Why did you do it? Rocky Sasaki insists on coming To the major leagues this winter?
The answer, which the 23-year-old Sasaki confirmed in his introductory news conference at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday, was related to the elbow problems he suffered as a first-year player for Japan’s Chiba Lotte Marines.
Sasaki, who was 18 at the time, had difficulties rehabilitating a strained muscle in his right arm. His slow recovery led him to visit several hospitals.
At one point, the doctor advised Sasaki to undergo Tommy John surgery.
Sasaki never underwent the operation, but the incident affected his thinking. Years later, he found himself thinking he didn’t want to risk a career-altering injury before competing in the most competitive league in the world.
“You hear many voices saying I should have waited another two years [to come to the United States]“But of course there are no guarantees about my condition during these two years,” Sasaki said in Japanese.
The burden of protecting the most talented arm ever to hit Japan has officially passed from the Marines to the Dodgers, who recognize the responsibility they have inherited. President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman said Sasaki has the talent needed to fulfill his ambition of becoming the first Japanese pitcher to win the Cy Young Award. General manager Brandon Gomez compared the 102.5 mph fireball to Paul Skines of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Friedman and Gomez also know that Sasaki is as fragile as he is talented, and their team is now tasked with developing him without breaking him.
While the Dodgers have turned many mid-major prospects into legitimate major league players, an alarming number of them have collapsed in recent years. Last season alone, Emmett Sheehan, Kyle Hurt and River Ryan underwent reconstructive elbow surgeries.
Was Sasaki worried?
“I had several minor injuries in Japan, and I don’t think it was just the result of the team’s directions,” Sasaki said. “I think there are many things I can do for myself, things I can improve. Of course, there is discomfort, but I think I have no choice but to make it work.”
Sasaki explored the topic of injuries in more detail in an interview broadcast in Japan earlier today. He said on NHK’s “Close-Up Gendai” program that the thought of rebuilding the facility in his first year after graduating from high school had a profound impact on him.
“Being at a point where I hadn’t even thrown a single pitch as a pro, to be told like that…” “I thought I didn’t really know when I wasn’t going to be able to play baseball anymore, or when I wasn’t going to be able to pitch anymore,” Sasaki said on the news program. “Or when I won’t be able to perform the way I used to.”
Eventually, Sasaki learned that his problems were shoulder-related, as the effect on his nerves led to discomfort in his elbow. Sasaki didn’t throw a single pitch that season, but he learned something.
Japanese right-handed pitcher Rocky Sasaki, 23, poses as he is introduced by the Dodgers during a news conference at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday.
(Damien Dovarganis/Associated Press)
“With just one step, [a baseball career can be] “It was turned upside down,” he said. “I really felt that something like this was possible. You don’t know what will happen in the future. Instead of waiting two years, I think it’s better at this timing to challenge myself in the majors and continue to develop.
By delaying his departure from the Marines for another two years, Sasaki could have signed a contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars. He was deployed before he was 25 years old, meaning MLB classified him as an international amateur player and limited him to a minor league contract. He received a $6.5 million signing bonus.
“I decided that the time I was going to spend in those two years was more valuable to me than money and things like that,” Sasaki said in his press conference at Dodger Stadium.
Compared to most Japanese pitchers who sign with major league teams, Sasaki is relatively inexperienced. After spending his entire first year with the Marines rehabbing, he pitched just 394 innings over the next four seasons. Last season, he was 10-5 with a 2.35 points average, but pitched just 111 innings.
The Dodgers almost certainly won’t significantly increase his innings, but they also have no plans to delay the start of his season to ensure his availability in October. Sasaki is expected to take a break from camp with the major league team.
“We don’t know at this point,” Friedman said when asked how Sasaki’s workload will be managed. “He will come out and start the season, and we will continue to work with him [his] Routine between the beginning. There is more travel here. But we don’t have any artificial number of roles. “It’s going to be more about partnering with him, getting feedback, and seeing how he recovers between starts.”
Friedman said Sasaki asked the Dodgers if they would use a six-man rotation.
“Now, with Shuhei [Ohtani] “And its dual mode makes it much easier,” Friedman said. “I think we’re in a unique position to do that, to be as flexible as we need to be, to be something that works best for Rocky’s development and we’ve made that commitment to him and we’ll see that through this partnership.”
The upside for the Dodgers is huge. If they can help Sasaki avoid what he has long feared, they may have the best pitcher in baseball.
