Sasaki announced he was joining the Dodgers on Friday, reigniting conspiracy theories
On Friday, Japanese ace Roki Sasaki announced his intention to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers, choosing the defending World Series champions over the San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays, among other teams who showed interest in obtaining his services. Sasaki, designated as an amateur because of his age and service time, will receive a $6.5 million signing bonus, or an amount that pales in comparison to the terms he would have fetched if he had been a more traditional free agent.
Sasaki’s decision to join the Dodgers has since given new life to unfounded conspiracy theories suggesting that he always intended to sign with Los Angeles — you know, as if underhanded dealings are necessary to explain why a player may want to join the sport’s most successful organization in recent times, let alone one that happens to employ two of his Team Japan teammates, in Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
The rash of Sasaki conspiracy theories seems to stem from two items in particular: 1) he was connected to the Dodgers for more than a year on the rumor mill (hardly uncommon these days for elite players), and 2) the Blue Jays, not the Dodgers, had the capacity to make the most lucrative offer, albeit only by a couple million dollars (again, it’s hardly unusual for team quality and other factors to serve as the deciding factor if the money is close).
Whatever one thinks about all that, it should be noted Major League Baseball has already investigated the matter prior to Sasaki’s official posting and found no reason to believe there was any improper agreement in place between Sasaki and the Dodgers. Here’s more on MLB’s investigation, according to Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times:
According to a league official, MLB conducted an investigation prior to authorizing Sasaki’s posting to “ensure the protocol agreement had been followed.” Another person with knowledge of the situation, who wasn’t authorized to speak publicly, said the league interviewed “numerous parties” in its probe, but found no evidence to substantiate the rumors.
If nothing else, it’s worth noting the other finalists for Sasaki’s services didn’t behave as though they believed it was a fait accompli he’d join the Dodgers. Indeed, the Padres kept their bonus pool powder dry until Friday morning. The Blue Jays, conversely, made a trade to obtain more space just hours ahead of Sasaki’s announcement, in the process taking on significant money in the form of Myles Straw’s contract.
