PHOENIX \u2014 The Los Angeles Dodgers are still not quite sure what they have in Roki Sasaki. So, the next chapter in the much-hyped phenom\u2019s rookie season will feature the 23-year-old trying something different: when the Japanese right-hander is activated off the injured list on Wednesday, it will be as a reliever.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s going to be in the \u2018pen, don\u2019t know what role,\u201d manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday. \u201cI think he\u2019s embraced it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sasaki hasn\u2019t had much choice but to embrace what the Dodgers are trying to get out of him. The Dodgers already had more than enough postseason starting pitching options when Sasaki started his rehab assignment last month. When Sasaki\u2019s fastball still sat in the mid-90s and still struggled to get swings and misses like it did before he went on the shelf with a shoulder impingement, it looked as if his chances to contribute at all in 2025 were all but dashed.<\/p>\n
Instead, Sasaki was receptive to changes.<\/p>\n
Rob Hill, the organization\u2019s director of pitching, visited Sasaki on his assignment and suggested tweaks to Sasaki\u2019s delivery, particularly how he uses his lower half. In his next start, he sat around triple digits with his fastball. The jump was enough to thrust him back onto the Dodgers\u2019 radar. A bullpen that has been prone to implosions \u2014 their 5.23 ERA ranks 25th in the majors \u2014 created a potential lane for Sasaki.<\/p>\n
So he shifted to Triple-A Oklahoma City\u2019s bullpen last week. In his first outing, he again touched 100 mph and worked around a base hit for a scoreless inning. He followed that up with a perfect inning Sunday. His fastball is starting to get swings and misses. His unicorn splitter is in the strike zone enough to get batters to swing at it. His new cutter, which replaced his slider, looks effective enough as a third pitch in short bursts.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s still not a lock that Sasaki will be on the postseason roster when the Dodgers open the National League Wild Card Series a week from Tuesday. But the Dodgers will spend this week seeing how it looks.<\/p>\n
Sasaki had never come out of the bullpen in his time in Japan with the Chiba Lotte Marines. His first time having any sort out outing coming out of the bullpen was this spring training. All eight of his big league outings (in which he posted a 4.72 ERA) were starts.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most important thing is he\u2019s open to it and willing to do whatever it takes to potentially be on our post-season roster,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cIt speaks to his character and being a great teammate. That\u2019s something for me that\u2019s most important. And then, now give himself an opportunity on the field. Then, I think once you get into some type of cadence, it\u2019s still pitching, it\u2019s still baseball. I feel he can do it, but it\u2019s up to him to go out there and perform.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sasaki\u2019s talent makes him an interesting postseason option. That he\u2019s an option at all only speaks to the desperation the Dodgers have right now in their bullpen. Their most trusted right-handed reliever, Blake Treinen, is in the midst of a brutal stretch. Edgardo Henriquez has just 20 1\/3 big league innings under his belt. Ben Casparius struggled enough against right-handers that he was sent to the minors. Kirby Yates has pitched his way out of leverage spots.<\/p>\n
The Dodgers\u2019 lone bullpen acquisition at the trade deadline, Brock Stewart, was acquired to tackle facing right-handed hitters. He\u2019s appeared in just four games for the Dodgers since the trade. Roberts said Tuesday it\u2019s not a guarantee that Stewart gets activated off the injured list this week after missing more than a month with shoulder trouble.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust kind of workload, kind of making sure he feels good,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cJust some conversations with Brock, making sure he\u2019s put in a position to feel good if he is activated.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stewart threw a flat ground session at Chase Field on Tuesday under the watchful eye of a trainer and general manager Brandon Gomes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got to kind of see where we\u2019re at, look at the totality of the \u2018pen and how it factors into all that,\u201d Gomes said. \u201cSo we\u2019ll take it day by day with Brock.\u201d<\/p>\n
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