To the chagrin of the rest of the baseball world, the reigning World Series champions Los Angeles Dodgers won the intense Roki Sasaki sweepstakes in the MLB offseason. The Dodgers, already boasting a stellar roster before Sasaki decided to take his talents to Hollywood,

The Dodgers cemented their status as the preferred MLB destination for NPB stars and transformed their rotation into a Mount Rushmore of Japanese pitching luminaries by winning the Rōki Sasaki sweepstakes.

Andrew Friedman reveals the Los Angeles Dodgers' plan for Roki Sasaki to start the 2025 season against the Chicago Cubs.

This is how it feels, anyway, and it isn't just because the Dodgers were revealed as the winners of the Rōki Sasaki sweepstakes on Friday. It is a big deal that one of the most talented pitchers on Earth is destined for Dodger Blue, but there's more going on here.

Even with Soto no longer available, there are plenty of other top-tier free agents, including Japanese pitcher Rōki Sasaki ... operations Andrew Friedman said signing Sasaki was "a major priority ...

At his age and talent level, Sasaki folds in perfectly for a Dodgers club that was already planning on running a six-man rotation.

The right-hander was one of the most sought after international free agents in recent memory, but the Dodgers won the race to land the coveted pitcher's services.