Yankees eyeing Munetaka Murakami after losing Roki Sasaki to Dodgers in $6.5 million deal
NY Yankees looking out for infielder Munetaka Murakami after losing Roki Sasaki free agency race to LA Dodgers.
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Munetaka Murakami and Roki Sasaki [Image Credit: Bleacher Report/Baseball America]
New York Yankees reportedly keeping an eye out for Japanese star infielder Munetaka Murakami after losing Roki Sasaki to the Los Angeles Dodgers. On Friday, Sasaki announced he’s officially joining the WS champions on social media.
Just like the previous years the NY Yankees once again lost another Japanese player to their rival team in the free agency. Earlier in 2017, the pinstripes tried to get Shohei Ohtani but failed. Even when Ohtani hit free agency they lost the deal to Dodgers who ended up winning the 2024 World Series title.
Furthermore, they also tried to get Yoshinobu Yamamoto but in vain. He also joined the Dodgers for a 12-year $325 million deal. Now the same happened with Roki Sasaki.
The Yankees were quite confident in signing Sasaki following their presentation and face-to-face meeting. A couple of reports even mentioned how Sasaki might be interested in joining the Bronx, but the deal came off earlier this week.
The Dodgers Triple-A affiliate, Japan, has 3B slugger Munetaka Murakami expected to make the jump to the major leagues next year.
— Mark Gooden (@TooGooden17) January 18, 2025
The Yankees didn’t even make it past the top 3 as the spot was taken over by – the LA Dodgers, the San Diego Padres, and the Toronto Blue Jays. Now they are aiming for next year Munetaka Murakami’s posting.
According to insider Michael Kay, the Yankees need to do something to stop this pattern and make sure they get to sign top international talents like other teams. After losing the top three Japanese players the Bronx needs to bring out their A+ game in the next free agency.
You’ve got to come up with another creative way to make yourself more attractive. You just do. (Yoshinobu) Yamamoto turned you down (for the Los Angeles Dodgers). Now, (Roki) Sasaki turned you down. I know the Yankees would love to have him (Munetaka Murakami).
Michael Kay on ESPN show.
Kay also talked about the recent Yankee joinee Paul Goldschmidt and his 1-year $12.5 million contract. He said the Yankees might be prepping for Murakami next year and that’s why they didn’t want to sign any long-term deals. They might have avoided adding Pete Alonso or Christian Walker on long-term deals for the same reason.
Roki Sasaki joins LA Dodgers for his MLB debut
Japanese ace pitcher Roki Sasaki signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday. His reported deal with the team is expected to be $6.5 million as he is only allowed to make minor league contracts before 25.
If Sasaki ended up debuting in MLB at 25 he could have signed a mega-deal like Yoshinobu Yamamoto. However, he chose to follow Shohei Ohtani’s footsteps as he announced on Instagram his joining the team on Friday.
Further details regarding his decision will be made public during a press conference but as of now, Sasaki ensured that this decision was well-thought. The 2025 Dodgers lineup will be scary to face as they represent some of the league’s best players in both pitchers and overall roster.
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Kaushani Chatterjee
(2147 Articles Published)