Los Angeles Dodgers phenom Roki Sasaki has begun working his way back from a shoulder impingement. Sasaki, who has not pitched since May 9, threw a bullpen session two days ago and is expected to do so again Monday, manager Dave Roberts told reporters Sunday (via MLB.com). Roberts mentioned Sasaki could return in late August.
Generally speaking, it’s a six-week progression from throwing bullpen sessions to facing hitters to pitching in minor-league rehab games to pitching in MLB games. The Dodgers figure to be cautious with the 23-year-old Sasaki, so perhaps they stretch that out to seven or eight weeks rather than the usual six, which would still put him on track to return in late August.
Sasaki made eight starts prior to going on the injured list and was very up and down. He threw 34 ⅓ innings with a 4.72 ERA and nearly as many walks (22) as strikeouts (24). There were times Sasaki looked terrific and times he looked like he belonged in Triple-A. There’s no denying the arm talent though. Sasaki has a high-octane fastball and an electric splitter.
The Dodgers’ rotation depth chart currently looks like this:
- RHP Shohei Ohtani
- RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto
LHP Blake Snell(out with shoulder inflammation)- RHP Tyler Glasnow
RHP Roki Sasaki(out with shoulder impingement)- LHP Clayton Kershaw
RHP Tony Gonsolin(out with elbow discomfort)- RHP Dustin May
RHP Gavin Stone(will miss 2025 with shoulder surgery)- RHP Emmet Sheehan
- LHP Justin Wrobleski
- RHP Landon Knack
- RHP Bobby Miller
RHP Kyle Hurt(will miss most of 2025 with Tommy John surgery)RHP River Ryan(will miss 2025 with Tommy John surgery)
Glasnow returned from shoulder inflammation this past week and Snell started a minor-league rehab assignment Thursday. He struck out four in two innings with the Dodgers’ Single-A affiliate. Ohtani is slowly getting stretched out as he works his way back from September 2023 elbow surgery. He threw a season-high three innings Saturday.
Despite a payroll approaching $400 million, the Dodgers have used 16 different starting pitchers this season, two more than any other team. Righty Ben Casparius, who allowed six runs in three innings in his last start and was frequently paired with an opener, moved back to the bullpen when Glasnow returned.
The Dodgers have lost seven of their last eight games while being outscored 53-19. Los Angeles remains atop the NL West and has the National League’s best record at 57-39.
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