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Marlins Draft Stanford Slugger Sasaki
13 Jul
Summary
- Miami Marlins selected Rintaro Sasaki in the eighth round.
- Sasaki played two seasons at Stanford, hitting 16 homers as a sophomore.
- He faces a decision between the Marlins and Japanese club Fukuoka SoftBank.
The Miami Marlins selected Rintaro Sasaki, a standout player from Stanford University, in the eighth round of the amateur draft on Sunday. The 21-year-old first baseman spent two seasons playing for the Cardinal.
During his sophomore year, Sasaki achieved a .262 batting average, hitting 16 home runs and driving in 47 runs. His youth career highlights include being Japan's all-time high school home run leader. Sasaki is now at a crossroads, weighing his options between starting his professional baseball career with the Marlins in the U.S. or returning to Japan.
This decision is complicated by the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball, who secured exclusive negotiating rights after drafting Sasaki in the first round last October. His choice will define the next step in his burgeoning baseball journey.
