PHOENIX — The first showing of what his agent joking called the “Roki Film Festival” had an eager audience Wednesday. More than 50 Los Angeles Dodgers players, officials and staffers huddled behind a screen and glanced at monitors as the biggest curiosity of the baseball world faced hitters for the first time in major-league spring training.
For 27 pitches across two simulated innings, a normally boisterous Camelback Ranch crowd watched in near silence. Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto stood alongside president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, chatting quietly between pitches.
“I was just a little surprised to see that many people there,” Roki Sasaki said through his interpreter.
It was a spectacle for the pitcher who drew widespread interest throughout the sport because of his young age (23), reasonable cost ($6.5 million signing bonus) and prodigious talent.
“When everybody wants this guy, everybody’s going to watch him,” Mookie Betts said. “It should be expected.”
A Roki Sasaki POV. pic.twitter.com/mkcPSH0VC2
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) February 19, 2025
Hordes of Japanese media hustled to capture the images of Sasaki, donning a Dodgers uniform, taking his latest step. Sasaki gave up a pair of hits. He struck out Eddie Rosario, a veteran in camp as a non-roster invitee, on a devastating splitter. Between innings, Sasaki stood in the dugout and discussed the outing with two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell. When his day was done he conferenced with catcher Will Smith and manager Dave Roberts before doing the same with Friedman and pitching coach Mark Prior.
“They thought it went well,” Sasaki said. His velocity was up, in the mid-90s. His command was generally where he wanted it to be. Sasaki even mixed in a few sliders with his fastballs and splitters.
“It’s a good step for him,” Roberts said. “It’s not going to make or break anything. I just think it’s a good opportunity for him to get another experience.”
Roberts and the Dodgers have cautioned against massive expectations for the rookie. Sasaki’s agent, Joel Wolfe, has admitted that Sasaki is not a finished product. The lone change of note thus far is streamlining Sasaki’s delivery in hopes of regaining his velocity after it dipped last season in Japan. General manager Brandon Gomes said this week the Dodgers want Sasaki to complete his onboarding process before overwhelming him with changes.
“The foundational pieces are there and now it’s about understanding that he is young, he does have room to develop,” Gomes said. “You don’t want to pull on those levers too quickly.”
Sasaki’s first season still brings massive questions. Will Sasaki remain healthy over a full season after missing time a year ago with shoulder and oblique issues? Will Sasaki be able to turn over a lineup multiple times consistently with that slider as his third pitch, even with that powerful fastball and unique splitter?
Then there are the host of adjustments that the Dodgers learned firsthand a year ago with Yamamoto. Sasaki noted the slight changes he’s had to make with baseball used in America as opposed to the one he used in Nippon Professional Baseball. It’s been rare to see him without Ohtani or Yamamoto nearby as he learns the ins and outs of his new environment. It remains to be seen how he adjusts to prolonged travel schedules. His arsenal will likely require tweaks to adapt to the different styles of hitters in the majors.
Then there are the small things in his first spring in the United States. At least one thing has stood out so far.
“The fact that there are meetings every morning,” Sasaki said, drawing a laugh.
Some more Roki Sasaki. pic.twitter.com/iS4EPeh3vK
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) February 19, 2025
There might not be a pitcher in the Dodgers’ talent-rich group of pitchers with a higher ceiling, with a fastball that has touched triple digits and a splitter with knuckleball-like action, diving one way and then the other from pitch to pitch.
“That splitter was fun to catch,” Smith said.
“It’s difficult to hit him,” Rosario said.
“His stuff looks really good and I know it’s going to play at this level for sure,” Tommy Edman said.
How quickly, and how much, is something the Dodgers can have the patience to find out. Sasaki’s arrival is a luxury for the Dodgers, who boast as strong of pitching depth as any team in the majors with three different starters on nine-figure deals (Yamamoto, Snell and Tyler Glasnow) and a boatload of pitchers with big-league track records who might start the year in the minors. Eventually, Ohtani will join the fray as well.
“Roki is certainly talented. I think we’ve just got to continue to give him opportunities, experiences. He’s going to find his own way,” Roberts said.
(Photo of Roki Sasaki: Darryl Webb / Associated Press)
