The New York Yankees are leaving no stone unturned in their free-agent pursuits, even if it means sending their front-office staff to Southern California for in-person meetings with high-profile players and their agents—twice.

Despite their setback in the chase for slugger Juan Soto, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told reporters in New York on Wednesday that he has scheduled a face-to-face meeting with pitcher Roki Sasaki and his agent in Southern California. “I’m just happy we have an opportunity,” Cashman said, adding that Sasaki has the potential to become one of the world’s top pitchers. “It would be nice to have Yankee Stadium as his home.”

Since Sasaki is 23 years old and lacks the required experience at Japan’s highest level of competition, his signing bonus is capped by his team’s international amateur spending limit. As a result, salary is less of a concern for teams interested in signing him. This is typically an area where the Yankees excel, as they often outspend other teams in free agency—making the 15-year, $765 million contract that Soto signed with the New York Mets a shocking blow to both the Yankees and their fan base.

Roki Sasaki

However, the Yankees may face additional challenges in their pursuit of Sasaki. His agent, Joel Wolfe, suggested that a smaller or mid-market team might be a better fit for Sasaki, considering his past experiences in Japan and the challenges he faced with the media there. “I think there’s an argument to be made that a small- or mid-market team might be more beneficial to him as a soft landing,” Wolfe said in Dallas last week.

Sasaki is widely regarded as the most talented pitcher available this offseason, regardless of price. At just 20 years old, he threw a perfect game with 19 strikeouts for the Chiba Lotte Marines in 2022, followed by eight more perfect innings in his next start. During the 2023 World Baseball Classic, his fastball consistently reached 100 mph. In 2023, he posted a 10-5 record with a 2.35 ERA across 18 starts for Chiba Lotte, striking out 129 batters in 111 innings.