Roki Sasaki stumbles, Dodgers bail him out in comeback win
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) pitches against the Washington Nationals during the first inning at Nationals Park. WASHINGTON — The box score will remember it as another comeback. The clubhouse will remember it as something else entirely.
On a gray, rain-delayed afternoon that felt like it might slip away for good, the Dodgers instead reinforced the identity they’ve been quietly building over the season’s first stretch: relentless, opportunistic, and increasingly dangerous late. Their 8–6 win over the Washington Nationals on Sunday wasn’t clean, and it certainly wasn’t conventional. For Roki Sasaki, it was a lifeline.
A start that nearly unraveled Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) pitches against Washington Nationals left fielder James Wood (29) during the third inning at Nationals Park. Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) pitches against Washington Nationals left fielder James Wood (29) during the third inning at Nationals Park. For two innings, Sasaki looked every bit like the front-line weapon the Dodgers envisioned.
Crisp, efficient, even flashing the developing third pitch he’s spent the spring refining. But by the third, the margin for error narrowed—and then disappeared. A walk to James Wood.
A spiked breaking ball. And then a mistake fastball that Luis García Jr. didn’t miss.
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