Roki Sasaki Doesn’t Hold Back on Spring Struggles
Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki had another overall poor start in Spring Training against the Royals, raising the level of concern around him.
Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki had another overall poor start in Spring Training against the Kansas City Royals, raising the level of concern around the highly-touted pitcher. Sasaki pitched 3. 1 innings on Tuesday night , though not all of them were concurrent.
He ended up walking three hitters in a row during the third inning. The bases were loaded, and as he lost command of all his pitches, Sasaki got pulled from action, coming back in the fourth inning. He gave up a two-run homer during the inning, but got out of it.
In the fifth inning, he gave up a hard-hit double, and that ended his night after a total of 71 pitches. Mar 3, 2026; Goodyear, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) looks on against the Cleveland Guardians during the first inning at Goodyear Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images On the whole, Sasaki threw only 38 strikes.
He had 26 swings on the night, seven of which were whiffs, while he only got a total of 12 called strikes. His fastball was spinning less than it did on average in 2025 — a concerning note for the righty. The velocity looked promising, with an average of 98 mph and a peak of 99 mph.