The Chicago Cubs already have landed one superstar by acquiring Kyle Tucker in a blockbuster trade with the Houston Astros.
Could another big move be on the way?
The Cubs could use at least one more frontline starting pitcher and it sounds like they are at least interested in arguably the best pitcher available on the open market. Rōki Sasaki is a 23-year-old phenom who pitched four seasons for the Chiba Lotte Marines in Nippon Professional Baseball.
Over the last four years, he logged a 2.02 ERA across 69 appearances with the Marines. He's one of the most intriguing prospects in recent memory. To put it into perspective, Yoshinobu Yamamoto landed a $325 million deal from the Los Angeles Dodgers last year at 25 years old. There have been rumblings that Sasaki is even better than Yamamoto and is 23 years old as opposed to then being 25 years old.
Because of his young age, he can only be signed using international bonus pool funds rather than just on the open market like Yamamoto last year. He will be very inexpensive but will provide a team ace-upside.
The Cubs clearly know this and reportedly will meet with him on Friday, according to 670 The Score's Bruce Levine.
"Sources -Japanese free agent pitching ace Rōki Sasaki is meeting with the Chicago Cubs today," Levine said. "All meetings for Sasaki are taking place in LA."
This is a huge update. If the Cubs somehow can land him, they will add a budding young superstar to the their rotation for years to come at a fraction of what it would cost to sign someone like Corbin Burnes in free agency.