With it, the clock began to tick on when Japanese ace Roki Sasaki, the best pitcher in the world not already under an MLB team's employment, will pick his next employer and complete his long-awaited transfer to North America.

Japanese ace Roki Sasaki is nearing a decision on where he'll play in 2025. Has he trimmed his potential suitors from three to two in recent days?

The 2025 international free agent signing period started Wednesday and the Guardians announced the signing of 10 players on X, formerly Twitter, with more to come. None of them was named Sasaki, the 23-year-old Japanese right-hander who is the big fish in this year’s class.