The Miami Marlins picked Rintaro Sasaki in the eighth round of the Major League Baseball Draft on Sunday. The 21-year-old Stanford University player now must decide between an MLB career, a return to Japan or staying in college.
The Miami Marlins selected Japanese slugger Rintaro Sasaki in the eighth round on Sunday. Sasaki arrived in the United States in 2023 after setting Japan’s high school home run record with 140 at Hanamaki Higashi High School.
He has played the past two seasons at Stanford University, where he hit 16 home runs in 2025. His decision to attend college made him eligible for both the MLB and Nippon Professional Baseball drafts.
In October the Yokohama DeNA BayStars and the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks each chose him in the first round. The Hawks hold exclusive negotiating rights that expire on July 31. Sasaki has said he remains undecided about his next step.
