Will the Washington Nationals be players in the Roki Sasaki sweepstakes?

With the recent news that the Chiba Lotte Mariners of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league will be posting their prized right-handed pitcher Roki Sasaki to be signed by MLB teams, let's evaluate whether or not the Washington Nationals could have a chance to sign him this offseason.

For starters, Sasaki's free agency is going to be a little bit different than when other Japanese sensations like Ichiro, Shohei Ohtani, or Yoshinobu Yamamoto came over to the United States. When those 3 came over, they all had accrued more service time than Sasaki currently has, which allowed him to sign as a normal free agent, rather than having to be posted as an international free agent. Sasaki, just 23-years-old, will be posted as such, and thus is subject to international bonus pool rules, which means we will not be seeing him sign a deal like the one signed by Yamamoto last offseason that was for 12 years and $325 million.

As of right now, it appears that the west coast teams would have an advantage over the rest of the league, and in case you were not yet aware, the Los Angeles Dodgers are considered the favorites to sign him...shocker. However, Jim Allen, a writer who covers the NPB, heard from a recent source connected to Sasaki who said that while the Dodgers might be the favorites to sign him, they are no lock to sign him as everyone seems to think currently.

If the source is indeed correct that a "small-market team with a solid development setup and plan could be the best destination" for the star righty, then perhaps the Nationals could have a nonzero chance of signing Sasaki. However, signing free agents from Asian countries has been a clear blind spot of General Manager Mike Rizzo throughout his tenure with the Nationals, and while signing the superstar phenom would be a clear step in the right direction, it would appear somewhat unlikely that Sasaki would sign with a club that has never ventured into signing free agents from Japan or any other Asian country.

If the Dodgers don't sign him, I would look at a team like the San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, or perhaps even the Chicago Cubs, who have all ventured into the Asian market in the international pool previously and have found success with previous players.

Do you think the Nationals will make a run at Roki Sasaki? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.