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Los Angeles Dodgers starter Roki Sasaki had the best outing of his young MLB career Sunday, but is still looking forward despite his impressive result.
The right-hander threw seven innings of one-run baseball against the Los Angeles Angels, striking out a career-high eight batters while allowing just four hits. He finally managed to avoid dangerous contact on his fastball, and his new slider looked the best it has all season.
While his fastball looked the best it has all season, Sasaki still saw potential improvements in his game.
“In terms of the fastball, I want more velo. The offspeed pitches, I feel pretty good about it,” Sasaki said. “So I’ll just keep continuing working on it and make sure I’ll be in a better spot.”
It’s hard to be unhappy with a result such as his yesterday, though, and made sure to credit his catcher for his success in mixing his pitches.
“I think [Dodgers catcher Dalton] Rushing did a great job with calling the game,” Sasaki said. “Pitch selection. It was because of that.”
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May 17, 2026; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) delivers during the first inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images
What Did Roki Sasaki’s Teammates Think of His Outing?
Rushing has caught five of Sasaki’s eight starts this season, and also saw some ways Sasaki could become much better than what we’ve seen.
“Today we saw a little bit of miss on the fastball, and that was something obviously we hadn’t seen too much this year,” Rushing said. “But I think that goes hand in hand with just landing off speed. When you land off speed, as a hitter, I’ll tell you, it’s harder to respect a fastball as much as you usually do, and just kind of go all-in on it. When a (pitcher) lands all pitches, it makes your at-bat a whole lot tougher.”
While he pointed a few things out about the outing, Rushing still acknowledged Sasaki had been far more impressive Sunday than what he previously showed.
“It’s really good momentum for him to carry forth,” Rushing said. “But at the same time, there’s opportunities for him to get even better. We know that’s not his ceiling. We know what he just did is obviously the best we’ve seen up to this point, but I trust that that guy’s got a lot more in the tank, and I’m going to continue to push him.”
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Mar 28, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (18), pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) and catcher Dalton Rushing (68) during the ninth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
When Will Roki Sasaki Start Again?
The Dodgers replenished their six-man rotation on Sunday with the acquisition of Eric Lauer for cash considerations, meaning Sasaki will have a regular amount of rest before his next start.
That start is most likely to come during the Dodgers’ weekend series against the Milwaukee Brewers, which closes their nine-game road trip. Before the Brewers, though, they have to worry about the San Diego Padres, who are right on their tail in the NL West.
The Dodgers lead the Padres in the division by 0.5 games, and will look to give themselves a cushion during their three-game set in San Diego this week. The first game of that series comes Monday at 6:40 p.m. PT.
What did you think of Roki Sasaki’s start?
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