Sasaki next international prize

Japanese ace Roki Sasaki will be available to Major League Baseball teams this offseason. The Chiba Lotte Marines announced Saturday they have chosen to start the process of moving the pitcher to a big league club in North America via the posting system. Sasaki, who turned 23 this month, is expected to become one of the most sought-after pitchers on the open market. The right-hander went 10-5 with a 2.35 ERA in 18 games this year, striking out 129 hitters in 111 innings. Because he is younger than 25, Sasaki will be classified as an international amateur free agent subject to bonus pool limits, according to MLB rules. That means his first contract would be a minor league deal no larger than seven figures. The Marines will receive a posting fee from the acquiring MLB team equal to 25% of the signing bonus. When Shohei Ohtani agreed to join the Angels in December 2016 at age 23, he received a $2,315,000 signing bonus. It’s unclear yet when Sasaki will be posted, starting the 45-day clock for him to sign with a major league club. The 2024 international signing period ends Dec. 15 and the 2025 period opens Jan. 15.

Perfect 10: Atkinson has Cavs rolling

Kenny Atkinson couldn’t help but smile as he looked at the box score and stared at the record of his Cavaliers. His first season as their coach has gone perfectly. “10-0 is something. It’s kind of a magic number, right?” Atkinson said. “I was worried about tonight because the Warriors are champions. That surprised me, how ready we were, how hungry we were.” Darius Garland scored 27 points and Evan Mobley had 23 as the Cavaliers routed the Warriors 136-117 on Friday night, becoming the first team in NBA history to win their first 10 games and score at least 110 points in each of them. Atkinson’s high-powered offense has been a great fit for Cleveland, which leads the league in points per game at 124.5 and with a .526 field goal percentage. Under now-Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff last season, the Cavs averaged 112.6 points and shot .479 from the field — with the same top nine players. They lost to eventual champion Boston in the second round of the playoffs. The only significant change made by general manager Koby Altman was hiring Atkinson after he spent three years as a Warriors assistant under Steve Kerr.

McCaffrey set to get 49ers on track

Spending the first half of the season as a spectator while he worked his way back from Achilles tendinitis took its toll on 49ers All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey described being in a “dark” place during his eight weeks on the sideline, dealing with both physical pain and the frustration over not being able to play. That is now in the past with McCaffrey set to make his season debut for San Francisco on Sunday against the Buccaneers. “Sometimes you just take it for granted that you play this game for a living and it’s what you do, it’s what you train for,” McCaffrey said Friday. “But when it’s taken from you, even just for a little bit of time, it makes you really appreciate every single day when you’re on the grass.” McCaffrey returned to practice on Monday and has made it through four days of work on the field without any setbacks, clearing the way for him to play. He is listed as questionable because he is still on injured reserve but is set to be activated Saturday. “We’ll take him off IR tomorrow and then he’ll be good to go,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. —Associated Press