Japanese right-handed pitcher Rōki Sasaki has ruled out a handful of teams and is seemingly getting closer to making his decision. According to ESPN's

The Padres won't give up and will use every last trick in the book to woo the most sought-after free agent from overseas.

Many people around the league opined last week that questions about the team’s ownership would harm the Padres’ chances to land Sasaki. But chatter among MLB teams’ personnel people increasingly names the Padres as the favorite to land the pitcher who posted a 2.02 ERA in 414⅔ innings over four seasons in Japan.