As the Los Angeles continue to get healthy, the Ball Club is eagerly waiting for the return of starlet pitcher Lokisasaki.
Sasaki is on the sidelines with shoulder issues dating back to her final appearance on May 9th. The were extremely cautious about Sasaki’s work from injuries given the fact that it was his introductory season in the major leagues. Furthermore, the ceiling at the age of 23 is sky high. And the last thing Ballclub wants is to bring him back to action, putting him at risk of being more seriously injured.
Sasaki reportedly developed another pitch while solving some mechanical problems that left the team behind. It’s a 2-seam fastball. Manager Dave Roberts revealed this when he spoke to the media recently.
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Sasaki introduced a two-seam fastball into the 4-seam/splitter/slider mix and threw it in live batting practice last week and Wednesday.
Roberts informed that the new pitch would give him a better opportunity to get an early counting ground ball out.
Roberts further detailed that Shohei Ohtani’s influence may have been scraped down on the younger pitcher. Having some difference from his fastball should allow Sasaki to become a little more diverse and unpredictable in his presentation.
“It’s probably a pitching coach combination, maybe you’re looking at Shohei (Ohtani) and probably looking at the major league batsmen,” Roberts said of Sasaki’s new two-seamer. “Having two independent fastballs, the other one can miss a bat. One can put the ball on the ground. These are two good weapons. So I’m grateful that the Roki is open to two seamers as well.”
In 2019, Sasaki has relied on three pitches, including a four-seam fastball, a splitter and a slider. The concern for Sasaki was the lack of a third pitch he could play. Splitters have a reputation for being an elite pitch at this point. Without a consistent slider, major league batters are simply sitting on Sasaki’s fastball.
In theory, placing another heater from the same arm slot with different movements makes it difficult to track down given the presence of another fastball.
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Photo credit: Jonathan Hui-Immagn Image
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