Once-Hyped Dodgers Rookie Snubbed as Dave Roberts Makes Bold World Series Gamble

The Los Angeles Dodgers welcomed a firing arm with a 102-mph fastball in January. But a right shoulder issue sidelined him for two months. Then his rehab started raising more questions than answers when he lasted just two innings for Triple-A Oklahoma City while allowing three runs on six hits with a walk, with an average velocity around 92-94 mph.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts set a clear outline after that shaky performance of Roki Sasaki, saying, “Once we get to three or four outings, we need to start to see performance. At the end of the day, we’re going to go with our 13 best pitchers. His talent is there, certainly. But he’s also got to perform, too.”

Well, those outings have now come and gone, but the performance never arrived. Over four minor league starts, Sasaki’s struggles became impossible to ignore with a final line: a 7.07 ERA across 14 innings. He allowed  11 runs in 17 hits and gave up eight walks while striking out eight batters with a 1:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and the most disappointing was that his velo never reached triple digits for a single time in those outings.

With just 22 games left, the Dodgers manager clearly said, “I guess the bar is high right now, because we’re in a pennant race,” he stated. “So to warrant pitching on our staff right now, there’s got to be urgency on his part and really dominant performance. That’s the level of where we’re at right now.”

And about the decision to put Sasaki in the Dodgers’ postseason roster, Roberts said, “Like I said a couple weeks ago, we’ve got to go with our best guys…this is the time, right now…again, Roki has gone through a lot this year. And he still has a ton of talent. We just want to see more.”

Before the injury, Sasaki posted a 4.72 ERA over eight starts and issued nearly as many walks (22) as he had strikeouts (24). So, when things remain the same after the injury, this verdict shouldn’t be a total shock. And with the entire starting rotation now healthy and Emmet Sheehan’s recent outings, Sasaki’s postseason role seems like an impossibility. While some suggest a bullpen role, he needs a miraculous turnaround to compete for a spot.

The Dodgers’ starting pitchers are all back and brilliant

This leaves no room for Sasaki in a lineup stacked with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and Clayton Kershaw. Blake Snell has returned from the injured list. Shohei Ohtani is back on the mound after recovering from his own surgeries. And at the end, rookie Emmet Sheehan’s emergence with a 3.59 ERA and 10.25 strikeouts per nine innings. With these six arms, the rotation is already full.

The path through the bullpen is just as crowded with elite arms like closer Tanner Scott, setup man Alex Vesia, long relief guy Justin Wrobleskiand, and other middle relievers like Jack Dreyer and Anthony Banda. Sasaki’s 1.79 WHIP and 1:1 K/BB ratio will look terrible next to their numbers in high-pressure playoff situations.

In the meantime,  the Dodgers must keep winning games as their rival, the San Diego Padres, is chasing them closely and is only 2 games behind. But they are still one of the favourites for the World Series run, and if things don’t go unnecessarily badly, the defending champion will certainly go big this time too. And manager Dave Roberts has made it clear that he is going with his best guys, and for now, the once-hyped Sasaki is not one of them.