Dodgers remain patient with Roki Sasaki
Roki Sasaki has struggled with command this spring training, all while adding new pitches to his repertoire. The Dodgers have been exceedingly patient with the 24-year-old right-hander, insisting all spring that he will start the season in the starting rotation, rather than get optioned to the minors to continue his work in progress. Bill Plunkett […]
Mar 3, 2026; Goodyear, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) talks with coaches during the fourth inning of the game against he Cleveland Guardians at Goodyear Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images Roki Sasaki has struggled with command this spring training , all while adding new pitches to his repertoire. The Dodgers have been exceedingly patient with the 24-year-old right-hander, insisting all spring that he will start the season in the starting rotation, rather than get optioned to the minors to continue his work in progress.
Bill Plunkett at the Orange County Register talked with manager Dave Roberts and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman about the plan for Sasaki : “There’s obviously a big gap between Triple-A and the big leagues,” Friedman said. “With certain really talented young players that we really believe in, we think that last mile of player development is generally better served at the major-league level. “That said, even with our established guys it’s one of continued player development.
Now for some guys, that’s more on the margins. For other guys there’s more involved. But we believe very strongly that he is going to be a very successful major-league starter.
Just how quickly that comes to be is a fair question. Obviously we’re going to pour everything we can into making that happen sooner rather than later and we’ll go from there. ” Friedman talked with Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times about a number of topics , including organizational goals: I wouldn’t say our mindset is all that different.