The Los Angeles Dodgers completed a sweep of the Cincinnati Reds and now shift their focus to the Philadelphia Phillies. While the bullpen has been a persistent issue for the Dodgers, that trend continued during the series against the Reds. However, newly appointed reliever Roki Sasaki once again showed why this role might be tailor-made for him.
“Sasaki got Spencer Steer and former Dodger Gavin Lux on swinging strikeouts — with 100-mph pitches — before retiring Austin Hays on a lineout to shortstop that started the celebration,” AP’s Beth Harris wrote.
What makes Sasaki’s emergence even more remarkable is that he’s only been in this role for less than a month. With the rest of the bullpen faltering, there is growing support for Sasaki to become the team’s permanent closer.
“I genuinely thought we wouldn’t see Roki Sasaki return in 2025… I figured they’d just shut him down and try again in 2026. He’s seriously the reliever I trust the most right now and he should be the closer moving forward. He’s looked flat out untouchable since returning,” Dodgers beat writer Blake Harris wrote.
From the moment Sasaki transitioned to the bullpen, manager Dave Roberts believed he was destined for success.
“The first part of it was him giving himself the opportunity to agree to go to the ‘pen. And then the next part is, he’s got to perform,” Roberts said. “Tonight, he performed. He was really good. And let’s see it again on Sunday. And then it kind of puts the onus on the organization to make a decision. In the postseason, there’s no roles. They’re all leverage.”
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Sasaki has quickly established himself as a key piece of the bullpen, and after Tuesday’s performance, he’s made a strong case for inclusion on the postseason roster. In just two appearances, he has looked like the Dodgers’ most reliable reliever.
Now, it’s up to Roberts to decide whether Sasaki should take over as the permanent closer. Nearly unhittable over the past week, Sasaki has silenced his critics after a season filled with ups and downs.
