Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki will make his second Spring Training start in 2026 against the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday, March 3.
Sasaki had a really bad start against the Arizona Diamondbacks, pitching just 1.1 innings, giving up three hits and three runs, along with two walks.
Advertisement
The righty has a ton of eyeballs watching how he pitches, with the nation of Japan rooting for him and many MLB scouts looking to see if he lives up to his hype coming out of overseas.
He has been highly rated by MLB personnel, which led to a circus-like courtship of his talent that ended with the Dodgers netting him.
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.
Sasaki will be looking to bounce back on Tuesday and build on his first start of spring. He struggled with his fastball early in his rookie year, with his velocity fluctuating throughout his starts, rising and falling regularly.
Also, with only a fastball and splitter to threaten hitters, Sasaki had a limited arsenal to deal with hitters, which was more pronounced as his velocity rose and fell.
Advertisement
Roki Sasaki’s First Spring Training Start
His first spring start saw him consistently stay in the high 90s, and he deployed his new cutter-slider hybrid with horizontal movement.
He threw a majority of fastballs, though, and his pitch mix was called out by manager Dave Roberts, who was critical of the young pitcher after an objectively poor start.
“I think as we kind of keep looking out, and he gets more outings – absolutely,” Roberts said.
“He’s just got to mix better. He’s got to command the fastball. Like I said, I just attribute it to first-game adrenaline. But, yeah, you want to see progress from everyone – especially someone like Roki who’s trying to build off last year.”
Given all he is working on, it is fair to remain patient with Sasaki, who missed months of action during his rookie year. His postseason stint out of the bullpen showed that his stuff does play when it is firing.
Advertisement
However, if the rest of spring ends up being similar in terms of his stuff looking lackluster and his pitch mix needing work, Dodgers fans may be rightfully concerned.
Do you think Sasaki will bounce back or will his struggles continue?