Roki Sasaki donned a No. 11 Los Angeles Dodgers jersey atop a makeshift stage Wednesday afternoon and called it the culmination of "an incredibly difficult decision." When Sasaki was posted by the Chiba Lotte Marines in the middle of December -- a development evaluators have spent years anticipating -- 20 major league teams formally expressed interest.

The Dodgers introduced right-handed pitcher Roki Sasaki to the Los Angeles media on Wednesday, holding a press conference at Dodger Stadium. Just last week, Sasaki agreed to join the Dodgers after an extensive free-agent recruitment process that included multiple meetings with the Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres.

Ohtani sent a text to Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman even before Sasaki’s agent informed the club.