Alarm bells were going off on Roki Sasaki as the Los Angeles Dodgers’ second-year pitcher closed out spring training with an absolute dud.
Sasaki got the start in the Dodgers’ penultimate spring contest against the Los Angeles Angels, and it could not have begun any worse for the Japanese hurler. Sasaki had zero command and had to be taken off the mound before he could record an out in the first inning at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Calif.
The hard-throwing righty started leadoff hitter Zach Neto off with three balls nowhere near the strike zone before hitting him on pitch No. 4. Mike Trout reached on a fielder’s choice to put two runners on base before Sasaki walked the next three batters to give up a 2-0 Angels lead.
Sasaki allowed two earned runs and three walks and failed to get a single out after throwing 30 pitches. Only 13 of them were strikes.
Roki Sasaki's line before he was pulled in the first inning tonight:
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) March 24, 2026
0.0 IP, 0 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 0 K on 30 pitches pic.twitter.com/bXmT3rIk6U
Sasaki was allowed to return in the second inning to face the same order of hitters. After Neto and Trout both got on base again, Sasaki was able to wiggle out of the jam with an inning-ending double play. The Dodgers youngster posted another clean inning in the third before being charged with another earned run in the fourth inning.
It wasn’t the first time Sasaki has been pulled from a spring training start early.
Roki Sasaki has been pulled off the mound early for the second time in his last Spring start for the Dodgers.
— Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) March 24, 2026
2 K
6 BB
4 ER
0 H
2 HBP
66 Pitches
2 IP
What’s your concern level from 1-10? pic.twitter.com/9lhaY68T86
Fans and reporters alike were vocal about Sasaki being a tough player to watch as he works his way back to a starting role.
Roki Sasaki is a very rough watch right now
— Blake Harris (@BlakeHHarris) March 24, 2026
Roki Sasaki just walked in a second run.
— Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) March 24, 2026
He’s gone through 30 pitches and hasn’t recorded a single out.
This is brutal to watch.
Many felt Sasaki’s struggles pointed to him truly being a reliever rather than a full-time starter.
Dodgers made a mistake giving Roki Sasaki a starting job. Far from ready.
— Klein25 (@Klein25) March 24, 2026
Roki Sasaki is a reliever. Quite a turn of events that a guy who was a 60-65 FV prospect (for fair reasons!) going into last year has fallen off this hard.
— Ryan Garcia (@RyanGarciaESM) March 24, 2026
The Dodgers used Sasaki as a late-inning reliever during their run to their second consecutive World Series title. While Sasaki found success in that role, the plan was always for Sasaki to eventually be part of LA’s rotation next to countrymen Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani.
At 24 years old, Sasaki still has a lot of time to grow into the starter that the Dodgers envisioned when they signed him last year. But the lights seem a little too bright for him thus far.
