There was a hint of optimism after Roki Sasaki struck out nine Chicago White Sox hitters in a “game B” outing last week. After Tuesday’s performance, the struggles that Sasaki has experienced throughout most of spring have returned.
Sasaki was finally able to throw at least half of his pitches for strikes on Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals— 71 pitches, 38 strikes— but was wildly inconsistent over 3 1/3 combined innings, as he walked the bases loaded in the third inning and was forced to be relieved by Nick Robertson. Sasaki came back out to the mound in the next two innings, allowing a two-run home run in the fourth inning and was again relieved after allowing a double to Starling Marte to begin the bottom of the fifth inning.
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Sasaki now carries an ugly 13.50 ERA over 6 2/3 innings, and although he has struck out 10, he has walked nine hitters over that span. Sasaki is cognoscente that his spring training numbers don’t ultimately matter, but Dave Roberts has expressed repeatedly the urgency for him to be a quality starter, especially as Blake Snell and Gavin Stone nurse injuries, notes Sonja Chen of MLB.com.
“I have a lot of things I need to work on,” Sasaki said through an interpreter. “But it’s just Spring Training, so just keep continuing to work on that. The results in Spring Training don’t really matter.”
“I think there’s progress in the sense that we got him into the fifth inning. The stuff was good, so that’s continued progress. Pitch count we got up,” Roberts said. “But I think the thing with Roki is, again, you’ve got to be efficient, you’ve got to be able to take down innings and be able to make adjustments sooner.”
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After a down second half last season that bled into the postseason, Blake Treinen has yet to get over his obstacles on the mound. He is posting a 10.80 ERA across five innings of work, with his latest meltdown coming on Monday’s 24-9 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers where he allowed two runs over 2/3 of an inning.
Dave Roberts noted a lack of confidence and conviction from Treinen this spring, but isn’t concerned about opening up a potential roster spot in lieu of the veteran reliever, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register.
“I don’t see confidence,” Roberts said. “Obviously the execution is not there, with the sinker, the sweeper is a ball. It’s been a few, three or four outings consistently not throwing the baseball the way we expect. But for me, off the top, there’s no conviction. I see a lack of confidence.”
For the first time in his big league career, Yoshinobu Yamamoto will kick off the Dodgers’ regular season in Los Angeles, as he is slated to start the team’s home opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
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Yamamoto spoke with Kirsten Watson of SportsNet LA on Tuesday about the significance of having his name called to begin the season.
Per interpreter Yoshihiro Sonoda: “It’s an honor for me, and it’s opening day at a Dodger Stadium home game. It’s an honor for me and I also feel the responsibility.”
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