Sasaki's surprise wedding announcement, how can he look like Ohtani, and his wife should see him in person to give him a gift. Roberts congratulatory joke, too

Feb 22, 2025

LA Dodgers' Rocky is pitching a bullpen session. AP Yonhap News

LA Dodgers Shohei Ohtani (left), Rocky Sasaki (center), and Yoshinobu Yamamoto are training together in the spring training. AP Yonhap News

It's shocking and surprising.

Los Angeles Dodgers Japanese pitcher Loki Sasaki made a surprise wedding announcement. There was no mention of having a girlfriend, but fans are quite surprised that they are married. In other words, they refused to go out in an open relationship and married behind closed doors.

Sasaki posted on her Instagram on the 22nd (Korean time) 'Thank you for always supporting me. Not long ago, she became a family with an ordinary woman. Both public and private companies are full of expectations and anxiety with a new start, but the couple will work together to live a hard life, so I would appreciate it if you could keep a warm eye on them.

There was no explanation of who the wife was, when or where she got married.

Sasaki did not know about the marriage to the Dodgers or his teammates. Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto were also surprised to learn that Sasaki was married on the same day. Shortly after the announcement of the wedding, Sasaki appeared in Sloane Field ahead of the away exhibition game against the Chicago Cubs and told local media that "Otani and Yamamoto were also surprised. I didn't believe it at first."

LA Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. AP Yonhap News

"My wife is not a celebrity, she is a good person. It is my first season in the Major League," Sasaki said. Our future is uncertain. But I think it will get better if we live together relying on each other. There's nothing I can do on my own. Marriage is very important in that sense. I think it's really special," he said.

Director Dave Roberts said, `What? I didn't even know he had a girlfriend. Anyway, congratulations" and "I'll have to prepare a wedding present, but I'll do it after I meet his wife."," he joked.

Sasaki's wedding announcement and surrounding reactions are similar to Ohtani's.

Tanika Ohtani and her husband pose at Phoenix Airport before boarding a flight to Korea on March 15 (Korea time) last year. Photo =LA Dodgers Official SNS

Mamiko Tanaka, wife of Shohei Otani, is smiling broadly as she watches a special game between the LA Dodgers and Team Korea at Gocheok Sky Dome ahead of the Seoul Series in March last year. Reporter Jung Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com

Ohtani, who signed a 10-year, $700 million FA contract with the Dodgers in December 2023, announced his marriage during the Camelback Ranch spring training ahead of last season. On February 29th, he posted on his Instagram page 'Season is coming up, but today I'm going to let everyone know that I'm married. Start with a new team and a new environment. The two announced their marriage, saying they want to join forces and rely on each other and walk with their fans.

Since then, it has been known that his wife is Mamiko Tadaka, a former basketball player, and a photo taken together was released when he boarded a flight to Korea for the Seoul Series in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 15. When entering Incheon International Airport, Ohtani and Tanaka were in the spotlight.

Sasaki, who is considered the NPB's best fireballer of all time, wore a Dodgers uniform in a posting last winter. Sasaki, who joined the team for $6.5 million as an international amateur FA under the age of 25, is in the midst of adapting to the major leagues in the spring training. After two bullpen sessions, he performed his first live pitching on the 20th. More than 50 officials and hundreds of fans gathered.

Sasaki threw 27 pitches in two innings, giving up only two line-drive hits, striking out two and overpowering the rest of the batters with ground balls. MLB.com said it also mixed sliders that appear to be in the process of refining while pitching mainly on the fastball and splitter.

Sasaki is scheduled to start in Game 2 of the opening series against the Cubs in Tokyo, Japan, from the 18th to the 19th. The first appearance in the exhibition game is also expected to take place soon.