The Los Angeles Dodgers appeared to have struck gold this offseason when they signed international star Roki Sasaki to a rookie contract. Sasaki was the number one prospect in all of baseball. He found incredible success in Nippon Professional Baseball, but things have been harder for him in Major League Baseball.
Sasaki has started eight games for the Dodgers this season, and is 1-1 with a 4.72 ERA in 34.1 innings pitched. He’s given up 18 earned runs.
About a month ago, Sasaki was sidelined with a shoulder injury, and now, in even worse news, manager Dave Roberts said that Sasaki may not pitch again this season.
What Did Dave Roberts Say?
From a Dodgers Nation article, this is what Roberts said regarding Sasaki:
“We have to plan on life without him at least this year, that’s fair to say,” said the skipper.
Sasaki does not believe he can ramp up at the moment to return to the Dodgers rotation this season, according to Roberts.
Roberts gave an update recently that Sasaki has been in the weight room getting stronger, but has been unable to throw any real pitches in the last several weeks. Truly a bad break for the Los Angeles Dodgers pitching staff, who have dealt with a plethora of injuries this season.
How Will This Affect the Dodgers’ Deadline Plans?
Starter Blake Snell is expected to rejoin the Los Angeles Dodgers’ rotation next week against the San Diego Padres, and Tyler Glasnow seems to be progressing well, but Los Angeles needs some help from its starters. It will be interesting to see how the Dodgers approach the trade deadline come July if the starting pitching does not improve. Tony Gonsolin is also on the Injured List, and Los Angeles has had to rely on an old Clayton Kershaw, Landon Knack, and Justin Wrobleski to get out. Luckily for LA, Dustin May has been serviceable and very healthy this season.
Here is what the site MLB Trade Rumors had to say about the Sasaki news:
“The news doesn’t change any short term plans for the Dodgers, as he wasn’t necessarily expected to return in the near future even before today’s news. MLB.comnotes that Sasaki did not have an estimated return date and had not yet progressed beyond playing light catch as of last week. While pitching coach Mark Prior noted at that time (as relayed by Plunkett) that Sasaki was pain-free, he noted even then that the phenom hadn’t progressed enough to start ramping up the intensity of his fastball and that Sasaki must be “confident in his ability to throw the baseball” before his rehab can proceed. Roberts told reporters (including Benjamin Royer of the Los Angeles Times) that he would defer to Sasaki in describing the issue.
It has been nothing but bad news for the Dodgers’ pitching staff this season, and if they want to repeat as World Series champions, it is likely that they will have to make some sort of move to bolster their pitching depth. Good thing they didn’t sign Sasaki for a boatload of money, but he was certainly expected to pitch much better than just 34 innings.
Dodgers Get Unfortunate Update on Rookie Roki Sasaki