New Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki made his MLB debut on Wednesday at the Tokyo Dome in the team’s 6-3 win, and the rookie pitched three innings, giving up one earned run while giving up one hit, striking out three and walking five batters. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that he believes there were nerves at play for Sasaki.
“I think there were nerves, and understandably so,” Dave Roberts said, via Tim Keown of ESPN. “The velocity was good, but I thought the emotions, the adrenaline, was hard to rein in. … The highs are going to be high, and when he’s not commanding it, it gets a little bit tricky. I do want to say he wanted to stay in the game. That’s a decision I made in the best interest of him, but he wanted to keep going.”
It is understandable for Sasaki to be amped up, and he showed that with his velocity, topping out at 101 mph in his start.
The third inning brought some trouble for Sasaki, as after an infield single by Jon Berti, he walked Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki to load the bases with one out, bringing up the Cubs’ best hitter, Kyle Tucker. Sasaki proceeded to walk Tucker as well, bringing in a run. However, Sasaki responded by striking out Michael Busch and Matt Shaw to end the inning. Roberts pulled Sasaki at the start of the fourth inning, using Luis Garcia.
The Dodgers ended up having a successful trip to Japan, going 2-0 in the regular season games against the Cubs. Now, they will return to the United States, where Sasaki will try to build off of his MLB debut and reach the potential that many believe he has. With the Dodgers, he likely will not have much pressure to be an instant success due to the strength of the team.
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