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Roki Sasaki finishes off Reds with 1-2-3 9th, sets up Phillies clash
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- Roki Sasaki finishes off Reds with 1-2-3 9th, sets up Phillies clash
The post Roki Sasaki finishes off Reds with 1-2-3 9th, sets up Phillies clash appeared first on ClutchPoints .
The Los Angeles Dodgers got a career-best postseason start from Blake Snell in the opening game of their Wild Card Series against the Cincinnati Reds . And on Wednesday Yoshinobu Yamamoto powered Los Angeles to the NLDS with his own nine-strikeout performance. But the Dodgers unveiled their secret weapon in the ninth inning.
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Roki Sasaki made his postseason debut in Game 2 of the NLWCS against Cincinnati. And the rookie hurler overpowered the Reds, closing the game with a 1-2-3 ninth inning, per MLB.com's Sonja Chen.
Sasaki transitioned to a bullpen role after returning from a lengthy injury absence. With the Dodgers' postseason rotation taking shape, the team turned to Sasaki to strengthen its relief pitching. And manager Dave Roberts has liked what he's seen from the former starter.
Roki Sasaki impresses out of bullpen in NLWCS
Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Sasaki earned Roberts' trust with two stellar appearances as a reliever at the end of the regular season. And those two scoreless innings were enough to secure Sasaki a spot on LA's playoff roster.
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The first-year righty had been sidelined since early May, missing 119 games while recovering from a shoulder impingement. When he was ready to rejoin the team, the Dodgers had settled on a rotation featuring Snell, Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani for the Wild Card Series.
But Roberts still needed help out of the bullpen. With Tanner Scott and Blake Treinen delivering shaky performances, Roberts used the final games of the regular season to audition potential relievers. According to the veteran manager, Sasaki looked like a different person entering the game in the seventh inning.
Some insiders speculated that the Dodgers could use Sasaki as their closer . But the idea seemed far-fetched. The 23-year-old starter was already making a major transition after a significant injury. Expecting him to handle the pressures of ninth-inning work after just two-career relief appearances seemed unrealistic.
But given Sasaki's dominant outing Wednesday, it suddenly seems plausible that he could close for Los Angeles. Of course, the Dodgers' 8-4 win in Game 2 was not a save opportunity. But the young pitcher impressed nonetheless.
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Sasaki chewed through the heart of the Reds' lineup. He overwhelmed Spencer Steer , touching 101 mph on his fastball and dropping down to an 87 mph splitter. He struck out Steer and Gavin Lux swinging on nasty splitters before Austin Hays lined out to shortstop on a four-seamer.
The Dodgers head to Philadelphia to battle the Phillies in the NLDS beginning Saturday. And Los Angeles could suddenly be armed with a new, game-changing ninth-inning weapon.
Related: Dodgers' Roki Sasaki gets 'gross' assessment from man who opened up closer opportunity
Related: Watch Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani douse Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Roki Sasaki in champagne
