It is safe to say that the Los Angeles Dodgers are expected to win more than their fair share of games in 2026. The lineup has few places for the opposing pitchers to breathe. The bullpen is reinforced, and the starting rotation is six deep. Los Angeles appears to be the best team in baseball on paper. The one question coming out of spring training was whether Roki Sasaki would regain a spot in the starting rotation. Or, more importantly, should he?
Spring Tremors
Sasaki began camp with the understanding that he needed a third pitch for his repertoire. Now, he has four. Added to that, his velocity was fine, which meant the shoulder that had given him problems last year was healthy. However, the control of said pitches remained an issue. He was pulled on numerous occasions without recording an out. His last start of spring was the worst of the preseason. In the end, the right-hander ended preliminary play with a 15.58 ERA and 15 walks with a few hit batters for good measure. This misery was only over a total of eight-plus innings and understandably led many to question the organization’s judgment and rationale.
Instilling Confidence
However, the Dodgers remained insistent that the young 24-year-old was going to remain a starter while Manager Dave Roberts acknowledged, “He needs to be better, and he knows that.” As the situation warranted, Los Angeles was set to have someone to piggyback after he was pulled. As for Sasaki, he insisted that he would be fine; he was just working on mechanical issues. Nevertheless, doubts remained.
More than a Silver Lining
There were a lot of prognostications and parameters as to what a successful outing would look like for Sasaki. However, the only obvious one was a 90 pitch limit per Roberts. The right-hander worked around a single and a stolen base in the first inning, retired the side in order in the second, before giving up his only run in the third on two doubles. It could have been worse, but to his credit, Sasaki showed the ability to get out of trouble against the meat of the Cleveland Guardians order by using three pitches effectively.
His new cutter got four whiffs on 12 swings. This is a good start. In all, he threw a total of 78 strikes in four plus innings. Striking out four while only walking two. If nothing else, limiting the walks while staying in or near the strike zone is a vast improvement over Spring training and even last year when he was healthy. Unfortunately, the Dodgers’ offense was stymied for most of the game and didn’t do anything until the ninth inning. As a result, they lost for the first time this season.
Seeing is Believing
However, in the scheme of things, the Dodgers may have gained something more important than the win. Sasaki, who admitted after the game that he was doubting himself, got a much-needed shot of confidence. Was it a perfect start? No. But it is a huge step in the right direction, and the Dodgers can use it as a springboard to set up Sasaki for future success.
Main Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
