His audition in the role was brief, but Roki Sasaki apparently impressed the Los Angeles Dodgers as a reliever. The rookie had two strong relief appearances at the end of the regular season, and that was enough for him to make the team’s postseason roster for the wild-card round.
The Dodgers announced their wild-card roster Tuesday, and Sasaki was one of the on-the-bubble players who made the cut. The Dodgers did not have to specify whether pitchers on the roster would be used as a starter or reliever, though it’s assumed Sasaki made the cut as a reliever.
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After he came to MLB from Japan in the offseason, big things were expected from Sasaki as a rookie. The 23-year-old was a phenom in Nippon Professional Baseball, posting a 2.10 ERA over 394 2/3 innings.
But the year didn’t go as planned in Los Angeles. Sasaki never had the velocity he showed during his early years in Japan, and he struggled with his control in his first couple of starts for the Dodgers. After a May 9 outing in which he allowed five earned runs over four innings, Sasaki — who had a 4.72 ERA through eight starts — was placed on the injured list due to a right shoulder injury.
He remained on the shelf until late September, when the Dodgers activated him with the intention of using him as a reliever. He returned to action Sept. 24, striking out two in one inning of work. Two days later, he took the mound again, allowing one hit and striking out two batters in another scoreless outing.
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Those two outings were enough to convince the Dodgers that Sasaki was ready to roll in the playoffs. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts hinted as much following Sasaki’s final relief appearance, telling reporters, “We’re excited. I think you’re seeing some edge, some emotion from Roki. It’s going to be a good thing for all of us.”
When asked whether those two appearances were enough for Sasaki to make the team’s postseason roster, Roberts responded, “We’ll see. We’ve got some good, tough decisions to make.”
With the Sasaki question answered, two other roster moves stood out for the Dodgers. The team opted to keep lefty Michael Conforto off the wild-card round roster. Conforto hit just .199 in his first year with the Dodgers. The move could signal the team is ready to move on from Conforto, especially considering the Cincinnati Reds will start at least two righties if the series goes three games.
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Catcher Will Smith, who is dealing with a fracture in his hand, also made the roster. He’s one of three catchers to make it, though will likely only be used in pinch-hit situations, per The Athletic.
Sasaki showed improved velocity as a reliever. After averaging 94.8 mph with his four-seam fastball in May, he averaged 99.2 mph with the pitch in September. That was more in line with the elite velocity he displayed in Japan.
When his fastball is occasionally hitting triple digits, Sasaki has shown elite upside thanks to a devastating splitter. Those two weapons could make him one of the Dodgers’ best options out of their vulnerable bullpen in the playoffs.
After a rocky rookie season, Sasaki recovered in time to pitch in the playoffs. While his future is more of a question than most anticipated after some early struggles, he has a chance to turn the page on all of that if he can deliver a dominant postseason out of the bullpen.
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