Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki appears locked into an Opening Day rotation spot, and those on the Dodgers’ early-season schedule should be ecstatic.
The control issues that haunted Sasaki throughout his rookie season continued with a vengeance this spring. Sasaki finished Cactus League play with a 13.50 ERA and nine walks allowed in 6 2/3 innings, numbers which only furthered the concerns about his future as a viable starting pitcher.
Roki Sasaki deserves a runway for the Dodgers
Although Sasaki pitched out of the bullpen last postseason, Dodgers lead baseball executive Andrew Friedman and manager Dave Roberts have been steadfast in saying that Sasaki will remain a starter going forward. Friedman also shot down the idea of the 24-year-old Sasaki opening 2026 in the minors.
“There’s obviously a big gap between Triple-A and the big leagues,” Friedman told reporters last week. “With certain really talented young players that we really believe in, we think that last mile of player development is generally better served at the major-league level.”
Friedman added, “But we believe very strongly that he is going to be a very successful major-league starter. Just how quickly that comes to be is a fair question.”
Considering that the Dodgers have won three titles this decade and are the two-time defending champions, it’s surprising to see them so obviously misreading the room in insisting that Sasaki’s short- and long-term future will come as an MLB starting pitcher.
The Dodgers are failing Roki Sasaki by keeping him as a big-league starter
In fairness to Sasaki, it would have been easy to dismiss his initial control problems as simply a young player struggling to adjust to both the big leagues and a new country. Keep in mind that Sasaki is only 24 years old. Leaving Japan for America, even if he joined Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the Dodgers, was — and still might be — a massive transition.
However, even his strongest defenders need to acknowledge that something is off. When I watch Sasaki, I see a pitcher who looks overwhelmed and nervous. I’m no pitching expert, so I won’t go so far as to say that Sasaki has the dreaded “yips” or something along those lines. I’ll defer to a pitching coach or someone like Rick Ankiel, the former Cardinals pitcher who battled the “yips” before becoming a full-time outfielder, on that one.
What I will say, though, is as a viewer, it’s tough to watch Sasaki without cringing. Consider that nearly 25% of the 38 hitters he faced this spring reached base via walk. For all of the talk about Sasaki’s 0.84 ERA last postseason, he still gave up five walks and a hit-by-pitch in those 10 2/3 innings.
Perhaps the worst part about the entire situation is that this isn’t an instance of a player stubbornly and publicly refusing to move to the bullpen. At no point have we heard Sasaki demand he remain in the rotation, nor is there any indication that he would do something like that.
It’s time for the Dodgers to admit a change is needed with Roki Sasaki
There would be no shame in the Dodgers either demoting Sasaki or having him open the season as a reliever. If the issue is tied to confidence, then the Dodgers must put Sasaki in a position where they feel he’ll have an opportunity to get outs and refine his control. There is no reason to believe those changes would come if he stays in the rotation.
Luckily for the Dodgers, they’re in a position where they could survive Sasaki failing to pan out as a major-league pitcher. Yamamoto is the reigning World Series MVP and a bonafide ace, and Blake Snell is a two-time Cy Young winner, albeit an injury-prone one. We also shouldn’t be surprised to see the Dodgers pursue Tarik Skubal or Freddy Peralta next offseason.
Let’s also not forget that the Dodgers signed Sasaki to a minor-league contract with a $6.5 million signing bonus because he was younger than 25. He is under team control through 2031, so him potentially being a bust won’t be the end of the world. If it sounds like we’re being dramatic or jumping to conclusions too early, let me reiterate that we’re talking about a pitcher with control problems.
Maybe Sasaki — and, by extension, the Dodgers — will prove me wrong, and he’ll emerge as a competent back-of-the-rotation starter this year. As of now, though, I just can’t fight that nagging gut feeling that what we’re seeing is an unfortunate sign of things to come.
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