MLB teams have coveted Roki Sasaki since he broke Shohei Ohtani's Japanese high school record by reaching 101 mph with his fastball as a 17-year-old in 2019, part of a 194-pitch, 12-inning, 21-strikeout complete game in the national summer Koshien tournament.

That would be 23-year-old Japanese starting pitcher Roki Sasaki, who opted to forgo a more lucrative payday to pursue his MLB ambitions earlier. According to an announcement on his Instagram page, Sasaki is joining the Los Angeles Dodgers.

As the MLB offseason continues, the newest member of the Dodgers, Roki Sasaki, comes in at number 1 on the ESPN top 100 prospect list.

There's not much question that while Major League Baseball remains the most prestigious and competitive league in the world, several other international professional leagues have closed the gap. In light of this,