Roki Sasaki Begins Transitioning Out of Dodgers' Bullpen
The Los Angeles Dodgers won the battle for Roki Sasaki's services before the 2025 season, but things didn't go to plan. The young Japanese phenom was a borderline disaster, and he ended up being optioned to the minors and then working out of the bullpen.
Now, he's begun transitioning back to the starting rotation, giving the Dodgers another key arm and proving to his biggest detractors that he can hold up in an MLB rotation. His first step towards that went fairly well.
Dodgers' Roki Sasaki has solid start
Not that it mattered because the Dodgers would've spent whatever they needed to, but Roki Sasaki's unique posting rules meant that they could sign him for cheap even after signing Blake Snell and others in a big offseason.
Because of their Japanese presence, the Dodgers are a big draw for players coming over. Plus, they're the best team in the sport. Signing Sasaki was seen as evidence of their power, but things just didn't work out very well.
Sasaki was horrible, got optioned, and then demoted to the bullpen. And after a pretty awful Spring Training, Sasaki seems to finally be on the rebound. He's also on the path to becoming a starter once again.
Sasaki said he didn't have any confidence after the spring, but he bounced back in a big way. He went four solid innings with four hits, one earned run, two walks, and four strikeouts. It wasn't mindblowing, but it didn't have to be in order to be a huge improvement.
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Dave Roberts speaks out
Roki Sasaki admitted he was not confident ahead of his first start since last May. That can make a difference, especially for a pitcher. Ultimately, it didn't, and it only showed how self-aware and honest the Japanese flamethrower is.
"When you don't have success, it's hard to have real confidence," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. "That was certainly an honest admission [by Sasaki]. But when you perform, you start to have true confidence. Hopefully, he can build on this one."
Prior to this start, his final tune-up was a disaster. He walked three and hit a batter before being pulled. Upon reentry, which is possible in exhibition games, he hit another batter and walked one more before finally settling down.
So with that in mind, four innings of solid work must've felt like a masterpiece. "I couldn't get through five innings, but the results overall felt pretty good," Sasaki said through an interpreter. "I kind of have confidence about that."
Dalton Rushing chimes in
It's Dalton Rushing's job as Sasaki's catcher to try and put him in the best position possible. His game calls matter. And it was Rushing's plan to try and get his young teammate off on the right foot to prevent him from spiraling.
"We needed to get him in the zone early," Rushing said. "And as soon as he gets in the zone, his stuff played a little better. Obviously, everyone loves to talk about the splitter, but to get swing-and-miss on the splitter, you have to establish the strike zone early."
Rushing said it was a "big step" in the right direction and that they will continue to build off this success. Sasaki said it is "not what I want right now, but I feel like I'm getting better." It's hard to disagree with that sentiment.
Now, the Dodgers must work to build up his pitch count. The spring session didn't do that because Sasaki couldn't stay in long enough to get stretched out. Now that he seems to be back on track, they can begin increasing his load and proving that the young pitcher can be part of an MLB rotation.
