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Marlins select Japanese slugger Rintaro Sasaki out of Stanford in draft’s eighth round

Marlins select Japanese slugger Rintaro Sasaki out of Stanford in draft's eighth round | iNFOnews.ca
Rintaro Sasaki, of Japan, a first baseman at Stanford, fields a grounder as other players wait their turn at the MLB baseball combine in Phoenix, Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

MIAMI (AP) — The Miami Marlins drafted Japanese slugger Rintaro Sasaki out of Stanford in the eighth round of the amateur draft on Sunday.

The 21-year-old first baseman played two seasons at Stanford, hitting .262 with 16 homers and 47 RBIs as a sophomore last year.

Sasaki played under Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani’s father, Toru, as a kid and is Japan’s all-time high school home run leader.

Fukuoka SoftBank of Nippon Professional Baseball has exclusive negotiating rights after using a first-round pick on Sasaki last October, so he faces a decision whether to remain in the US or head back to Japan to start his professional career.

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