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Yankees face uphill battle in sweepstakes for Japanese ace, MLB insider reports

The New York Yankees were granted a meeting with one of the top remaining free agents, but it appears there’s an uphill battle to bring him to The Bronx.

While the Yankees have improved their starting rotation with the addition of Max Fried, who signed a $218 million deal in free agency, most teams are vying to land Roki Sasaki, a 23-year-old star out of Japan.

As the meetings have gotten underway, though, the Yankees are reportedly falling out of favor, according to Jon Heyman of The New York Post.

“Both the Yankees and Mets were given meetings with superstar Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki but both surely understand they’re not the favorites here,” Heyman wrote. “The Dodgers remain favored, followed by the Padres.”

Adding Sasaki and his 100-mph fastball to the rotation would give the Yankees an elite starting five. They already have the aforementioned Fried, Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon, Clarke Schmidt and Rookie of the Year Luis Gil returning.

It seemed like a long shot that the Yankees would land Sasaki, and the Dodgers have been favored from the jump.

It will be interesting to see where he lands, but it doesn’t appear it will be in The Bronx.

MORE MLB: Why Yankees could be out on $200 million star

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