"I think as we kind of keep looking out, and he gets more outings - absolutely. He's just got to mix better. He's got to command the fastball. Like I said, I just attribute it to first-game adrenaline. But, yeah, you want to see progress from everyone - especially someone like Roki who's trying to build off last year."
"He has been highly rated by MLB personnel, which led to a circus-like courtship of his talent that ended with the Dodgers netting him. Sasaki will be looking to bounce back on Tuesday and build on his first start of spring. He struggled with his fastball early in his rookie year, with his velocity fluctuating throughout his starts, rising and falling regularly."
Roki Sasaki, the highly-touted Japanese pitcher signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers, will make his second Spring Training start on March 3 against the Cleveland Guardians. His first spring outing was disappointing, lasting only 1.1 innings with three hits, three runs, and two walks allowed. Manager Dave Roberts criticized Sasaki's pitch selection, emphasizing the need for better mixing and fastball command. Sasaki struggled with velocity fluctuation during his rookie year and relies primarily on a fastball and splitter, with a newly developed cutter-slider hybrid. Despite the rough start, patience is warranted given his limited action last season and strong postseason bullpen performance.
Read at Dodgers Nation
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