Roki Sasaki shows progress in six innings, but Dodgers fall to Rangers on walk-off

Los Angeles Times

19-04-2025

ARLINGTON, Tex. — Roki Sasaki was in line for his first career win in Major League Baseball on Saturday.
Instead, the Dodgers suffered their first walk-off loss of the season.
Up a run in the bottom of the ninth, thanks in large part to Sasaki's season-long six-inning, two-run start, the Dodgers' bullpen couldn't hold on.
Primary closer Tanner Scott was down after closing out Friday's win. Top ninth-inning alternative, Blake Treinen, was put on the injured list pregame with forearm tightness.
That meant veteran right-hander, and former Texas Rangers closer, Kirby Yates was summoned to try and finish off his old club. He couldn't, giving up a leadoff double and then a walk-off two-run home run to Adolis García for a 4-3 loss at Globe Life Field.
The ending overshadowed an otherwise positive day from the 23-year-old Sasaki — who saw his fastball velocity suffer a noticeable drop on Saturday, but took another step forward in his major league development nonetheless.
Early on, Sasaki's heater was as soft as 92 mph. Not until the fifth inning did it top 96 mph. Overall, it averaged just 94.7 mph, a stark drop from the 96.9 mph average he had over his first four MLB starts.
And yet, he turned in his best effort as a big-leaguer anyway, using a heavy dose of splitters and sliders to hold the Rangers' powerhouse lineup to just a two-run home run from Kyle Higashioka in the third inning.
The Dodgers offense, meanwhile, put Sasaki in line for his first career win, erasing the early 2-0 deficit with a three-run rally in the fourth that was keyed by Freddie Freeman's two-run homer and (after a botched pickoff attempt from Rangers pitcher Nathan Eovaldi moved Michael Conforto into scoring position) a go-ahead ground-rule double from Max Muncy.
The bullpen provided a bridge to the ninth inning, with Jack Dreyer, Alex Vesia and Evan Phillips (who was making his season debut after being activated off the injured list in place of Treinen) combined for scoreless frames in the seventh and eighth.
Yates, however, failed to record an out in the ninth. Josh Smith hammered a leadoff double after barely missing the right-field foul pole on a potential game-tying homer two pitches before. García then launched a no-doubt blast to left field, hammering an elevated 93 mph fastball to knot this three-game series between the past two World Series champions.
The result highlighted the significance of Treinen's absence, serving as an immediate reminder of how valuable he's been to the bullpen early on this year.
Treinen, who has two saves and a 3.38 ERA this year, first felt something in his arm after pitching an inning against the Chicago Cubs last Sunday. That day, he struck out three batters, but also gave up a run on two hits and averaged less than 93 mph on the two fastballs he threw — almost two ticks lower than his normal velocity.
This week, the Dodgers had tried to avoid using Treinen, hoping the rest would alleviate the issue. However, while warming up in the ninth inning on Friday, Treinen reported more tightness to the team. It was enough for the Dodgers to put him on the IL, and cut Phillips' triple-A rehab assignment short to pitch on Saturday.
The severity of Treinen's injury wasn't immediately clear. According to manager Dave Roberts, Treinen was scheduled to get an MRI later on Saturday. While his timeline to return wouldn't be known until the team got those results, Roberts said his initial concern level is 'not too high right now.'
'We want to get to the bottom of it,' Roberts said. 'Don't know how long it'll be. But I appreciate Blake for letting us know his discomfort.'
Still, it didn't take long for the Dodgers to miss the veteran right-hander in a save situation that would have been tailor-made for him.
A day that should have been about Sasaki's first career win, instead ended in a frustrating defeat.