The Los Angeles Dodgers don't have any plans as of right now for rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki (shoulder) to have medical intervention such as a pain-killing injection for his right-shoulder impingement. Manager Dave Roberts said Sasaki will be shut down from throwing for a while. L.A. placed the 23-year-old Japanese rookie on the 15-day injured list on Tuesday, and it sounds like he'll be out beyond the required 15 days. His fastball was electric in his MLB debut back in March in Tokyo and touched triple digits, but he had not reached 99 mph with his heater since, and his shoulder impingement appears to be the primary culprit. In addition to his fastball being easier to hit at a lower velocity, Sasaki has shown poor control of his secondary pitches in his first eight big-league starts, posting a 4.72 ERA and 1.48 WHIP with just a 15.6% strikeout rate and elevated 14.% walk rate. He's a work in progress and probably won't return until June.

The Los Angeles Dodgers announced on Tuesday that they placed rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki (shoulder) on the 15-day injured list with a right-shoulder impingement and recalled right-hander J.P. Feyereisen from Triple-A Oklahoma City in a corresponding move. Whether it's a phantom injury or a real one, we do know that the Japanese 23-year-old hasn't touched 99 mph with his fastball since his MLB debut in Tokyo back in late March. The Dodgers and Sasaki will now have several weeks to get to the root cause of his troubling drop in velocity, although it could definitely be due to right-shoulder fatigue in his first year in the big leagues. On top of his fastball being way too hittable because of its drop in velocity, Sasaki has walked 22 hitters in his first 34 1/3 innings for a 4.72 ERA through eight starts. He's still a work in progress. It's unclear who the Dodgers will use to fill his rotation spot moving forward.

Per Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, rookie starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (arm) experienced arm soreness following his start against the Arizona Diamondbacks last Friday. Roberts noted that the team is "sorting out" whether it will require a trip to the injured list. On the bright side, it doesn't seem to be too severe, but a trip to the IL is an unfavorable outcome regardless -- particularly when his fastball has recently dipped into the low 90s. Sasaki has struggled early on while adjusting to big-league hitting -- that, combined with the recent injury, makes him a risky proposition for the time being. Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior reported that the team is working on aspects of the right-hander's mechanics, which will hopefully clean up his dreadful 14.3% walk rate. Expect an update on him soon.

The Los Angeles Times' Jack Harris writes that Los Angeles Dodgers Japanese rookie right-hander Roki Sasak hasn't hit 99 mph on his fastball since his adrenaline-fueled debut in his MLB debut in Tokyo, Japan, to start the season and has dropped as low as 92-93 mph since then. Sasaki hit 100-plus mph on each of his first four big-league pitches and eclipsed 99 mph eight times in the first inning on March 19 against the Cubs. But in seven games since then, the 23-year-old phenom has averaged just 96 mph with his four-seamer. "It's not an ideal situation," pitching coach Mark Prior said. "Clearly, the fastball is not gonna carry through the zone at 93 very effectively." The problem is Sasaki needs premium velocity to make his fastball competitive because it doesn't have much spin or "vertical break." The Dodgers are working on mechanical fixes for Sasaki, who currently has an underwhelming 4.72 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 15.6% strikeout rate and concerning 14.3% walk rate in eight starts.

Los Angeles Dodgers rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki will make his next start on Friday on five days of rest against the division-rival Arizona Diamondbacks, according to manager Dave Roberts. The Dodgers are in a stretch of 10 games in 10 days, so Sasaki will be forced to make his first start of the year on five days of rest. In his first seven MLB starts on six days of rest between each outing, the 23-year-old Japanese hurler has gone 1-1 with a respectable 3.86 ERA (5.38 FIP) and 1.45 WHIP with 24 strikeouts and 20 walks in 30 1/3 innings pitched. He has reached five innings in each of his last four starts, but fantasy managers should be warned that Sasaki has been fortunate to have an ERA under 4.00 given his lack of command in the early going. The Dodgers will continue to monitor Sasaki's workload as the season progresses, limiting his fantasy upside in his rookie campaign.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki allowed one run across four innings of work in his start against the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday afternoon. Sasaki was given a no decision. He struck out four batters and allowed three hits and two walks. Sasaki allowed two straight singles to open the contest but was able to escape the inning by allowing just one run, off an Alec Bohm RBI groundout. This was a nice bounce-back for Sasaki, as he was only able to log one 2/3 innings in his previous outing against the Detroit Tigers. In this start, he allowed three hits, four walks, and a run. The 23-year-old saw similar issues in his first start of the campaign overseas, facing the Cubs, as he allowed three hits and two walks across four innings of work. While Sasaki carries elite strikeout upside, his lack of control does add a lot of risk. He will look to continue to develop in his next start against the Cubs.

Los Angeles Dodgers rookie starting pitcher Roki Sasaki couldn't get through two full innings of work on Saturday, getting only five outs before being pulled. However, the Dodgers would still prevail 7-3 over the Tigers. Sasaki allowed two runs on three hits and four walks while striking out two batters, throwing just a hair over half of his 61 pitches for strikes. For the season, the 23-year-old has allowed three earned runs on four hits and owns an ugly 9:5 BB:K over 4 2/3 innings pitched. He'll need to clean that up, or his next start on the road in Philadelphia could be a rough one as well.

In his first career MLB start in Tokyo, Japan, against the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki picked up a no-decision by allowing one earned run on one hit while walking five and striking out three in only three innings pitched. The 23-year-old was a bit wild, and the one run he allowed came home on a bases-loaded walk in the third inning, but he was able to escape the jam by inducing two strikeouts to end the inning. Things could have been a lot worse for the young Japanese hurler in his first outing against Chicago. Sasaki's stuff is real and should play in the big leagues, but expect the Dodgers to continue to limit him early in the year from an innings perspective, which will limit his fantasy upside as a No. 2 starter. Sasaki is also going to need to show better control to be effective.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki was officially added to the 40-man roster on Monday ahead of the team's Tokyo Series set to run March 18-19. This was expected all along, but the move was more of a formality. Baseball's No.1-ranked prospect tossed seven innings of scoreless ball in Cactus League action, allowing three hits and three walks while striking out seven batters. He's expected to start Game 2 in Japan against the Cubs, and we'll get our first chance to see him in a regular season game, but even if he pitches well, don't expect him to go deep into the contest. Looking ahead, the 23-year-old should be a solid source of wins, ERA, WHIP, and strikeouts for fantasy this season, but some caution is warranted as he very well could face workload restrictions throughout the year.

The Los Angeles Dodgers officially announced on Tuesday that Japanese rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki will start Game 2 in Tokyo, Japan, on March 19 against the Chicago Cubs. Sasaki was expected all along to start one of the games in his native Japan to kick the 2025 season off, but now it's official. The 23-year-old made just his second Cactus League appearance in the team's final spring training game on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Angels and looked good by giving up one hit, walking two and striking out two in four scoreless innings of work. Sasaki certainly has the stuff to succeed with the Dodgers and for fantasy managers as a No. 2 starting pitcher in his first year in the big leagues, but the Cubs won't be the greatest matchup out of the gates, and Sasaki might be lucky to go four innings. The stuff is legitimate, but workload restrictions could keep him from reaching his true potential in Year 1.