Dodgers notes: Roki Sasaki’s improvements, slumping offense
TL;DR
Roki Sasaki shows improvement for the Dodgers with a 0.75 ERA in the first two innings but struggles in later innings, leading to a 9.72 ERA thereafter. The Dodgers' offense is slumping, scoring only 12 runs over the last five games.
Key points
- Roki Sasaki has a 0.75 ERA in the first two innings.
- Sasaki's ERA jumps to 9.72 in innings three and beyond.
- The Dodgers scored only 12 runs in their last five games.
- Mark Prior is helping Sasaki develop a faster splitter.
- Dave Roberts hopes the offense can improve against familiar pitchers.
“After giving up three runs in the third inning, I was able to just stay focused and attack the zone, especially (the fifth and sixth) innings. So that’s good,” Sasaki said through his interpreter.
“The third and fourth innings, I was kind of struggling. I was trying to find my mechanics. But after that … I was able to make an adjustment. I got better mechanics.” Dave Roberts spoke about Sasaki’s growth as a major league starter following Saturday’s loss to St. Louis, noting that there are hurdles that have yet to be overcome, per Plunkett. “Each of his last handful of starts, he’s gotten better,” Roberts said. “But there’s some finishing school that needs to happen, where you’ve got to get the guys out that you need to get out and try to face less hitters.” Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times notes that Mark Prior has worked with Sasaki on developing a new splitter that’s around six miles per hour faster than his ordinary splitter, and that has been a key reason for his recent effectiveness. “We’re always supportive of crisper, harder, however you want to define it, assuming that it maintained his throw and maintained everything else,” Prior said of the new splitter… “Lo and behold, the first one was really good,” Prior said. “The second one was really nasty.” The Dodgers offensively are in the midst of a dormant five-game stretch where they have totaled just 12 runs as a team, and they were nearly shut out on Saturday had it not been for a two-run, two-out rally in the top of the ninth where they had the potential tying and go-ahead runners on base. Andy Pages— who added to the rally with an RBI single to make it a one-run Dodgers deficit— noted that the rally might have lit a spark within this struggling offense, but the importance is maintaining good at-bats top through bottom, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com. “It was a good offensive sign in the ninth inning,” Andy Pages said through interpreter Juan Dorado. “But I think as a whole, we know we’re going through a bad stretch, and we’re just trying to focus on having really good at-bats, one at a time.” Facing against an old friend on Sunday in Dustin May, who carries a 5.28 over his first six starts as a Cardinal, Dave Roberts hopes that the Dodgers bats can wake up and salvage the series against a pitcher they’re quite familiar with, per Chen. “Hopefully,” Roberts said, “we can take that sense of urgency tomorrow against a guy that we’re very familiar with.”
Q&A
What are Roki Sasaki's current ERA statistics for the Dodgers?
Roki Sasaki has a 0.75 ERA in the first two innings but a 9.72 ERA in innings three and beyond.
How has Roki Sasaki improved in his recent starts?
Sasaki has reduced his walks from 10 in his first 13 innings to only five in his last 15 2/3 innings.
What is the Dodgers' offensive performance during their recent slump?
The Dodgers have scored just 12 runs over their last five games, nearly facing a shutout in their latest match.
Who is working with Roki Sasaki on his pitching mechanics?
Mark Prior has been helping Sasaki develop a new splitter that is six miles per hour faster than his previous one.
