Roki Sasaki grinds through four, Dodgers fall to Rangers

Dalton Rushing #68 of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Roki Sasaki #11 of the Los Angeles Dodgers at the mound during the game against the Texas Rangers at Dodger Stadium on April 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.

LOS ANGELES – The sweep was there for the taking on a sun-splashed Sunday afternoon at Dodger Stadium. Instead, the Dodgers were reminded—again—that even their star power and momentum have limits.

Behind a gritty, if imperfect, outing from Jacob deGrom, the Texas Rangers avoided the broom and handed the Dodgers a 5–2 loss. It was a game that began with a bang—literally—and slowly tilted the other way.

Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers reacts to his home run during the game against the Texas Rangers at Dodger Stadium on April 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.

Ric Tapia - The Sporting Tribune

Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers reacts to his home run during the game against the Texas Rangers at Dodger Stadium on April 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.

The first pitch Shohei Ohtani saw from deGrom didn’t just leave the yard—it disappeared. A towering leadoff homer to right field gave the Dodgers an instant 1–0 lead and extended Ohtani’s on-base streak to 46 games.

It wasn’t clean. Three walks. Deep counts. Traffic early. Yet the veteran right-hander settled into something more familiar—dominance. By the time he walked off after six innings, he had allowed just one run on four hits while striking out nine.

On the other side, the “Roki Sasaki Experience” continues to be equal parts electric and exhausting.

Roki Sasaki flashed swing-and-miss stuff, piling up a six strikeouts. His fastball had life, his breaking pitches generated chases, and when he needed it most, he found a way to escape damage. Twice in the early innings, he worked out of serious trouble, including a first-inning jam where he struck out the side after allowing the first two hitters to reach.

That’s growth. That’s promise.

But it’s also incomplete.

"The biggest regret is that I threw too many pitches, so I couldn't pitch deep into the game." Sasaki said.

Sasaki labored through four innings, throwing 94 pitches and walking five. Ten of the 22 batters he faced reached base. The third inning offered a snapshot of the challenge: one misplaced fastball, and Evan Carter turned it into a game-tying homer. By the time Sasaki exited, the Dodgers were already playing from behind, and their bullpen would eventually let the game slip further away.

Dave Roberts praised Sasaki’s ability to limit damage, noting he “didn’t let it spin out of control.” That’s true. But the next step, pitch efficiency, attacking early, working deeper into games, remains just out of reach.

"I don't think it was a bad outing at all. We just have to lean on really attacking hitters a little more and getting ahead." Rushing said.

The Dodgers had chances late. In the seventh, Dalton Rushing sparked a rally with a leadoff double, and Kyle Tucker delivered a two-out RBI single to cut the deficit to one. For a brief stretch, the ballpark buzzed again.

Then the eighth inning happened.

A combination of shaky command and questionable sequencing unraveled things quickly. Josh Jung and Ezequiel Duran set the table, and the Rangers capitalized with the kind of opportunistic offense the Dodgers couldn’t match. A wild pitch. A timely hit. Suddenly, a one-run game became a three-run cushion.

The Dodgers will point to missed opportunities—0-for-4 with runners in scoring position before Tucker’s hit, an inability to solve deGrom once he settled, and a bullpen decision that didn’t pan out. But zoom out, and this loss feels more like a checkpoint than a setback.

Sasaki is learning, in real time, what it takes to navigate a major league lineup multiple times. Ohtani continues to do things that defy routine. And even in defeat, the Dodgers showed flashes of the resilience that’s defined their start.

No sweep. No panic.

Up next, a new test arrives as the New York Mets come to town, with Justin Wrobleski set to face David Peterson. The Dodgers will turn the page, as they always do, knowing that over 162 games, one missed opportunity rarely lingers for long.