Given the Dodgers will likely go to a six-man rotation next season — something to further accommodate the schedules of Yamamoto and Ohtani (when he returns to the mound after a second major elbow ligament reconstruction) — the more arms, the better.

The Chiba Lotte Marines announce 23-year-old pitcher Roki Sasaki will be posted, making him a free agent and a potential target for the Dodgers.

For years, Seattle was regarded as a premier destination for Japanese players making the jump to Major League Baseball. The Mariners had strong ties across the Pacific: They had a longtime owner, Hiroshi Yamauchi,