Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki made the decision to call his own pitches, wearing the PitchCom device to lead catcher Dalton Rushing.
According to Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register, Sasaki was deciding what pitches to throw on Wednesday during his opening appearance in Spring Training.
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Sasaki ended up throwing a strong majority of fastballs, trying to establish it early, with not many different pitches.
He switched to his other pitches towards the end of his outing, adding his new cutter and even a sinker to the action.
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) throws to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first inning on Feb. 25, 2026, at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale.
The Japanese pitcher is coming into a crucial season with massive ramifications, meaning every outing and pitch will be important.
He threw 27 pitches over 1.1 innings, allowing three earned runs, three hits, two strikeouts, and one walk.
“I called my pitches by myself because I wanted to try something,” Sasaki said through his interpreter to Plunkett. “I wanted to try my own pitches that I wanted to make.”
Rather than letting him develop in the minor leagues and build his confidence, the Dodgers put Sasaki straight into the major league team from the start, but inconsistency and injuries led to him missing time.
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This year, he is fully healthy, and while his start was not as good as he expected, he has plenty of time to prove himself as a major league starter.
Dave Robert on Roki Sasaki’s start
In Dave Roberts’ mind, Sasaki drifted from his mechanics, leading to the lackluster results.
“Honestly, today was the first day I thought he came out of his mechanics. I just thought he was overthrowing,” Roberts said.
“The main thing is he’s got to pitch off of his split. He can strike it, shorten it. Then mix in the fastball, commanded.
“And then work on that third pitch we’re talking about. But today I think he got into some bad counts. He just didn’t have feel or command of that fastball.
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“That first inning I don’t think he used his split at all. So, yeah, I’m just going to chalk this one up to his first outing. Then as we build up to two, three innings I think we’ll see a better outing.”
Dodgers fans should be excited about Sasaki’s boldness to call his own pitches, showing his confidence is still intact.