Don’t place Roki Sasaki on any Hollywood billboards just yet.
The Japanese ace’s agent, Joel Wolfe, pushed back against rumors that Sasaki is all but guaranteed to join the Dodgers once he is formally posted by his NPB team.
The Post’s Joel Sherman reported earlier this month that “within the industry, though, the Dodgers are viewed as everything from a powerful favorite to all but having him secured already.”
There is enough buzz and even speculation of an “unwritten agreement” that some rival executives have “informally” mentioned the rumors to the commissioner’s office, according to The Athletic.
“While a bunch of executives who should know me better and do a lot of business with me insult my integrity by insinuating that I would be a part of some type of nefarious agreement,” Wolfe told the outlet, “in reality, this is just poor sportsmanship.”
As many have speculated about when Sasaki may become available to MLB teams, the Dodgers have been at the forefront of potential employers.
Beyond their on-the-field prowess that includes being the reigning World Series champions, the Dodgers already employ two of the world’s best Japanese players in Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Their presence seemingly would help Los Angeles’ chances to land a third Japanese star.
Wolfe also represents Yamamoto.
Dallas Keuchel, who pitched alongside Sasaki for the Chiba Lotte Marines this past season, provided some substance to the unwritten agreement rumors in his exclusive interview with The Post.
Such agreements are illegal, per The Athletic.
“I heard some, some rumblings about a done deal with the Dodgers — you know, having a plan for him,” Keuchel told Sherman. “And if I was Vegas, I would definitely put them as the favorite, but I don’t know. We never really talked about that.”
The Dodgers rumors are particularly intriguing since it seems Sasaki would have to forfeit money to sign with the NL West powerhouse.
Unlike Yamamoto, who signed a historic $325 million contract with the Dodgers as a true free agent, Sasaki will be posted under MLB’s international rules, like Ohtani was after the 2017 season.
Sasaki would sign a minor-league deal and receive a bonus via international pool money.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said he expects Sasaki will be posted for the 2025 class — instead of the 2024 class, where the Dodgers would have an edge.
The Dodgers have $2,502,500 for their 2024 pool, the most of any team, per the Associated Press.
For 2025, the Dodgers are more than $2 million behind the leaders.
Eight teams have $7.56 million available to spend, per the AP, while the Dodgers have $5.15 million. The Yankees and Mets have $6.26 million at their disposal.
Teams can still free up space, but Manfred said the league will be monitoring the situation in case of any infractions.
“If there’s any reason to believe that there was a violation of one of our rules, you can rest assured that we will thoroughly investigate and try to get to the bottom,” Manfred said Wednesday, per the AP.
