NEW YORK — Roki Sasaki’s assignment will likely extend through the 2025 international signing period, baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said, allowing teams up to $7,555,500 to sign the prized Japanese pitcher.

“It looks like the way things are going to play out, that the signing there, just because of the timing, will take place during the new pool period,” Manfred told a news conference after a meeting of the owners.

If Sasaki signed this year, his maximum bonus would be $2,502,500 with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Chiba Lotte Marines of the Pacific League announced on November 9 that they would roster the 23-year-old right-handed pitcher. According to the agreement between Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball, the posting period runs from November 1 to December 15 and players have 45 days after posting to reach an agreement. Sasaki has not yet been released.

Sasaki was 10-5 with a 2.35 ERA in 18 games this year, striking out 129 batters in 111 innings. In his 2023 debut for Japan against the Czech Republic in the World Baseball Classic, 21 of his pitches exceeded 100 mph.

Because Sasaki is under 25, he will be classified by MLB as an international amateur free agent subject to bonus pool limits. Chiba will receive a posting fee equal to 25% of the signing bonus from the acquiring MLB team.

Baseball’s international signing period runs from January 15 to December 15, and most teams have allocated most or all of their bonuses this year to Latin American prospects in January. The Dodgers kept the most available money in their signing bonus pool for 2024, leading some officials from other teams to speculate whether a Sasaki deal was already in place. The day before the World Series began, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman declined to answer a question about how much money was still available.

“We’ll see what happens there,” Manfred said. “If there is reason to believe that there has been a violation of any of our rules, you can be assured that we will investigate thoroughly and attempt to get to the bottom of the matter.”

Baltimore has $2,147,300 left this year, the New York Yankees have $1,487,200 and San Francisco has $1,247,500. The other teams still have less than $1 million, including Tampa Bay and Texas who have no available money and eight other clubs with less than $100,000.

Through 2025, the Athletics, Cincinnati, Detroit, Miami, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Seattle and Tampa Bay each have $7,555,500 available.

Arizona, Baltimore, Cleveland, Colorado, Kansas City and Pittsburgh each have $6,908,600, followed by Atlanta, Boston, Chicago Cubs and White Sox, Los Angeles Angels, New York Mets and Yankees, Philadelphia , San Diego, Texas, Toronto and Washington. at $6,261,600.

Houston and St. Louis each have $5,646,200, and the Dodgers and San Francisco have $5,146,200.

If a team has an unofficial agreement with a Latin American prospect for a 2025 contract, the club could opt out of the deal to free up pool space and attempt to sign Sasaki.