Rōki Sasaki, the 23-year-old phenom from Japan whose services for the next six seasons could be procured by every Major League Baseball franchise for the equivalent of a rounding error, ended his six-week recruiting period by agreeing to sign with the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday,

Prized Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki says in an Instagram post he intends to sign with the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodger.

After much speculation, the hard-throwing Japanese pitcher posts his decision on Instagram, choosing to play with countrymen Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Los Angeles.

The Dodgers beat out basically all of MLB for Sasaki, who met with several teams to evaluate what they could bring to the table beyond money. The Dodgers, San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays were reported to be the finalists, with the Dodgers and Padres seen as the co-favorites for most of the process.

The 23-year-old Japanese phenom has a fastball that regularly reaches triple digits and wowed MLB scouts at the World Baseball Classic in 2023.

After days of hopeful speculation, the Toronto Blue Jays have officially missed out on free agent sensation Roki Sasaki. Sasaki announced on Instagram that he

Sasaki, nicknamed in Japan as "the Monster of the Reiwa Era," struck out 11 batters in 7 and ⅔ innings with a 3.52 ERA during the 2023 WBC. In Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, he struck out 129 hitters in 111 regular-season innings for the Marines in the 2024 season.