Roki Sasaki continued his rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Tuesday and turned in a solid start against the Sacramento River Cats (San Francisco Giants’ affiliate).
The right-hander allowed three runs on three hits and struck out eight against four walks in 4.2 innings of work. Sasaki threw 90 pitches (52 strikes) and averaged 98.6 mph on his fastball while reaching triple digits six times.
“That’s great,” Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Sasaki’s fastball velocity, which was up considerably from his last start and overall.
“That’s a good thing for the Dodgers and for Roki. We’ll have some conversations after this one, but that’s good to hear.”
In five starts with the Comets, Sasaki has posted a 6.75 ERA and 1.71 WHIP with 16 strikeouts against 12 walks in 18.2 innings pitched.
The Dodgers will soon need to make a decision on his immediate future as pitcher rehab assignments can only last for a maximum of 30 days.
“Let’s just get through this last outing and then the organization, we’ve all got to huddle up and figure out what’s the next plan,” Roberts said. “I personally don’t know Roki’s plan after tonight.”
Sasaki has been on the injured list since May 13 due to a prolonged recovery from a right shoulder impingement that twice shut him down from throwing.
He made eight starts for the Dodgers before the injury, going 1-1 with a 4.72 ERA and 1.49 WHIP in 34.1 innings pitched.
Roki Sasaki’s role with Dodgers
With the Dodgers starting rotation back to full health, Sasaki will likely have to contribute out of the bullpen if he rejoins the Major League team. However, Roberts noted that Sasaki’s role is still up in the air.
“Anything is possible. Once he gets out of this one, I think we’ll have more clarity and if things change with our starters right now,” Roberts explained.
“But I know Roki is anxious to get back here, I know he wants to contribute. Like I said last week, guys are pitching well as far as starters, so we’ve just got to see where he fits in. We’ll have that conversation as an organization.”
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