Los Angeles Dodgers starter Roki Sasaki took a massive step forward a month ago, transforming himself into the Dodgers’ most reliable pitcher at the moment.
Sasaki entered the All-Star break with a 5.33 ERA, having allowed three or more runs in each of his last five starts. Upon taking the mound in Yankee Stadium on July 17, though, he had become a completely different pitcher. He allowed one unearned run that outing through 5.2 innings, and hasn’t looked back since.
His next outing came on the road against the New York Mets, where he pitched seven innings of one-run baseball in a win while striking out nine batters. Over his two most recent outings, he has only allowed four runs through 11.1 innings of work.
The Dodgers have struggled as a unit as of late, with players slumping on both the hitting and pitching side, but Sasaki has been a bright spot during the Dodgers’ dark dog days.
How Good Has Roki Sasaki Been Since the All-Star Break?
Since the end of the All-Star break, Sasaki’s 1.88 ERA is tied for the best among starters on the Dodgers, level with World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and including Yamamoto’s 6-run performance on July 11, Sasaki is actually better, as pointed out by Lawrence August in the Offical Dodgers Nation Facebook group.
Sasaki’s other numbers, though, outperform his teammate’s. He has a 2.57 xERA to Yamamoto’s 2.72, and both his FIP and xFIP well outperform Yamamoto as well.
His 27.7% strikeout rate during this stretch also leads starters on the team. His whiff rate is way up from his season average, as he has generated swing and miss 35.7% of the time over his last four starts.
Sasaki’s improved control plays a part in his success, as he has a 7.4% walk rate over the last month compared to his 9% clip on the season.
The biggest factor, though, is the quality of contact he allows. Sasaki’s 29.5% hard-hit rate over the course of his last four starts is astoundingly low, and would rank as one of the best clips in baseball if it stayed consistent over the course of the season. Additionally, only one of the 61 batted balls he has allowed over his past four starts qualified as a barrel.
He’s also not allowing hitters to pull the ball, with just 41% of batted balls going to the pull side, showing Sasaki has done a fantastic job controlling contact quality over his past few starts.
Sasaki’s renaissance is a huge boost for the Dodgers as the postseason nears, and they hope their young right-hander can maintain his form for the remainder of the season.
