Roki Sasaki had a roller-coaster year for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2025, Sasaki’s debut campaign in MLB. After early struggles, Sasaki was yanked from the Dodgers’ staff. Injuries afflicted him during the season, too.
Sasaki showed a ton of resilience, though, emerging as LA’s closer during the latter stages of the season. He even turned in some clutch outings in the playoffs, impressive for a 23-year-old (he turned 24 two days after Game 7 of the World Series).
Sasaki was super convincing as a closer, and no one would have been surprised if the Dodgers leaned into that role and made him their everyday closer in 2026.
That’s not what’s going to happen, though, according to Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes. In an interview this week at the Winter Meetings with MLB Network, Gomes plainly stated that Sasaki will be a starter in 2026.
Of course, this announcement comes in tandem with the Dodgers signing Edwin Díaz on Wednesday, but it’s notable that Gomes made these remarks before the Díaz deal became official.
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Sasaki’s MLB journey has still just begin. He signed with the Dodgers on January 22 for a $6.5 million bonus and debuted on March 19 against the Chicago Cubs, fanning Seiya Suzuki for his first big-league strikeout. In the regular season, Sasaki made 10 appearances, including eight starts, posting a 1-1 record with a 4.46 ERA over 36 1/3 innings. He racked up 28 strikeouts but issued 22 walks, revealing command issues.
The playoffs transformed him. Shifted to the bullpen, Sasaki delivered a 0.84 ERA in 10 2/3 postseason frames, notching three saves and six punchouts. Now a World Series champ, Roki eyes a rotation return in 2026 after the Dodgers inked Díaz.
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Along with Roki, the Dodgers are looking at a rotation featuring Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani, with other arms factoring into the equation for depth.
Featured image via Kirby Lee/Imagn Images
