The New York Mets, like many other teams, made a run at Japanese superstar Rōki Sasaki. However, as his deadline to sign approaches, teams are being ruled out and the Mets have seemingly lost the sweepstakes.
SNY’s Andy Martino revealed that the Mets and New York Yankees have both been ruled out of the race to land Sasaki.
“Yankees and Mets not expected to sign Roki Sasaki, league sources say,” Martino wrote on X. “Yankees have been told they’re out. Mets not expected to sign him either.”
The Mets added Clay Holmes and Frankie Montas to their rotation this winter. They also brought back Sean Manaea. Adding Sasaki could have given them another elite arm at virtually no cost. Sasaki has the potential to become an ace and is not subject to normal free agency spending.
Unlike other free agents, the Mets cannot rely on their deep pockets to beat out other Sasaki suitors. Sasaki is an amateur free agent because he is under the age of 25. That means teams can only use funds from their international signing bonus pool allotment to get him. When the 2025 period opens the Mets would have had $6.2 million at their disposal to land Sasaki.
However, with Sasaki ruling out the Mets they could look to pivot to a different arm if they even want to spend on another pitcher. Jack Flaherty and Jose Quintana could both be options for the Mets.
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