And then there were two. According to reports from The Athletic’s Will Sammon and Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com, the San Diego Padres appear to have dropped out of the Roki Sasaki sweepstakes, with the franchise pivoting to a pair of international prospects from the Dominican Republic,

The Roki Sasaki sweepstakes are approaching their end, and the biggest question remains: Will the Japanese ace end up on the West Coast, or head north of the border? The reigning champion Dodgers and Blue Jays are the final teams standing from a pool that included the Yankees,

The Toronto Blue Jays versus the Los Angeles Dodgers. Unfortunately for Jays fans, we know how that has turned out in the past. That said, a report from MLB insider Francys Romero on Friday morning suggests that the San Diego Padres are out of the running for highly coveted 23-year-old Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki.

With ownership turmoil and no offseason additions, the Padres must figure out how to contend without the Japanese phenom they coveted.

The Blue Jays announced on Friday that they've obtained outfielder Myles Straw, cash, and international bonus signing pool space from the Guardians in exchange for a player to be named later or cash.