Sasaki's inquiry impressed those involved in the sweepstakes and served as further indication of his desire to become one of the best pitchers: 'The question was pointed and incredibly thoughtful,' according to one of the executives tasked with answering it. It also proved consuming, posed to teams just days before the first round of meetings. 'The homework assignment,' said one club official briefed on the process, 'was the presentation, basically.'
While the star power that the Dodgers were able to bring to the table in their second meeting with Sasaki helped move the needle, there was plenty of work that went into getting that opportunity. According to Fabian Ardaya, Dennis Lin and others of The Athletic, Sasaki wanted information on his fastball velocity decreasing during the 2024 season: He asked each potential employer to explain the reason behind a vexing issue that lingered over his final season before a long-anticipated jump to the majors: Why did his velocity fall off?
Collection
[
|
...
]