Kazuhiro Sasaki was going to have his good health, his forkball and $9.5 million in 2004.
The one thing he couldn’t have as a major leaguer, his family, became reason enough for Sasaki to walk away from the Seattle Mariners and all that money.
Sasaki’s agent, Tony Attanasio, said Monday that the right-handed relief pitcher has asked to leave the Mariners, forfeiting the final year of his contract, because he wants to play in Japan and be close to his wife and two children.
Sasaki was scheduled to announce his decision at a news conference in Japan at about 11 p.m. Seattle time (4 p.m. today in Japan), although Attanasio confirmed the news earlier Monday.
“Any time family is involved and one has to choose between family or money, it’s not a difficult decision,” Attanasio said. “The personal career, the money and the challenge of a job left undone were tremendously agonizing for this guy. But when he looked into the eyes of his kids, it was an easy decision.”
Attanasio said Sasaki has wrestled with the possibility of leaving the Mariners for weeks but didn’t decide to do it until days ago.
Mariners general manager Bill Bavasi said he wants to accommodate Sasaki’s wish but will consider him a part of the team until a complicated separation can be completed.
“He is a contracted player,” Bavasi said. “As of today, he’ll report to camp with pitchers and catchers. That’s our point of view. But, we know what his wishes are and we are going to do our best to accommodate him.”
Bavasi said he isn’t aware that any other case in major league baseball has been similar to this, and he was reluctant to speak specifically of how the Mariners will deal with it.
“There are just too many variables that I’m not certain of,” said Bavasi, who believes it will take the involvement of the Mariners, Attanasio, Sasaki, the commissioner’s office and the players association to reach a settlement. “He’s not going to be just released until all those details are handled. You’re talking about termination pay and a lot of money involved.”
Last winter, Kevin Millar became embroiled in a complicated negotiation involving the Chunichi Dragons, Florida Marlins and Boston Red Sox. Millar had accepted a two-year, $6.2 million contract to play for the Dragons but had a change of heart because of the possibility of war in Iraq. Major League Baseball brokered a deal that returned Millar’s rights back to the Marlins, and the Boston Red Sox then acquired him with a two-year, $5.3 million contract.
Sasaki is walking away from the $8 million he would have gotten from the Mariners this year, plus $500,000 in possible bonuses and a $1 million buyout if the club didn’t pick up his $8 million option year in 2005.
He’s also walking back into the lives of his wife Kaori, son Shogo and daughter Reina after spending a difficult 2003 season without them.
The Sasakis kept the children in school in Japan last year, and it became an especially stressful separation after Sasaki was injured and couldn’t play for much of the season. He had tripped while carrying his luggage and broke several ribs.
“Physically he was down and emotionally he was down,” Attanasio said. “His most prized possessions were thousands of miles away and he couldn’t get to them and they couldn’t get to him. From that respect, this was the right decision to make.”
Attanasio said nothing has been arranged with a team in Japan, although the Yomiuri Giants are believed to be interested in signing him as a closer.
The loss of Sasaki would shove left-hander Eddie Guardado into the closer’s role but also increase the Mariners’ need for a quality second left-handed reliever. Currently, the Mariners’ best hope is veteran left-hander Mike Myers, who was invited to spring training on a minor league contract.
Sasaki is Japan’s all-time saves leader after pitching 10 seasons with the Yokohama Bay Stars in Japan’s Central League. He signed with the Mariners before the 2000 season and became a key player in the team’s rise to two postseason appearances and one division championship.
He recorded 37 saves in 2000 and won the American League Rookie of the Year award, had 45 saves in 2001 and 37 in 2002, but just 10 last year when injury and a loss of velocity on his fastball undermined the effectiveness of his forkball.
As he spent much of the summer rehabbing from the rib injury, including two rehab outings with the Everett AquaSox, those close to Sasaki said he struggled emotionally being away from his family.
Allen Turner, Sasaki’s translator during the four years he played for the Mariners, sensed that burden.
“For any of these players to come over here and play away from their country, it’s not an easy thing,” Turner said. “He loves his family. It was hard for him.”
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