Roki Sasaki DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

The Los Angeles Dodgers don't have any plans as of right now for rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki (shoulder) to have medical intervention such as a pain-killing injection for his right-shoulder impingement. Manager Dave Roberts said Sasaki will be shut down from throwing for a while. L.A. placed the 23-year-old Japanese rookie on the 15-day injured list on Tuesday, and it sounds like he'll be out beyond the required 15 days. His fastball was electric in his MLB debut back in March in Tokyo and touched triple digits, but he had not reached 99 mph with his heater since, and his shoulder impingement appears to be the primary culprit. In addition to his fastball being easier to hit at a lower velocity, Sasaki has shown poor control of his secondary pitches in his first eight big-league starts, posting a 4.72 ERA and 1.48 WHIP with just a 15.6% strikeout rate and elevated 14.% walk rate. He's a work in progress and probably won't return until June.

The Los Angeles Dodgers announced on Tuesday that they placed rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki (shoulder) on the 15-day injured list with a right-shoulder impingement and recalled right-hander J.P. Feyereisen from Triple-A Oklahoma City in a corresponding move. Whether it's a phantom injury or a real one, we do know that the Japanese 23-year-old hasn't touched 99 mph with his fastball since his MLB debut in Tokyo back in late March. The Dodgers and Sasaki will now have several weeks to get to the root cause of his troubling drop in velocity, although it could definitely be due to right-shoulder fatigue in his first year in the big leagues. On top of his fastball being way too hittable because of its drop in velocity, Sasaki has walked 22 hitters in his first 34 1/3 innings for a 4.72 ERA through eight starts. He's still a work in progress. It's unclear who the Dodgers will use to fill his rotation spot moving forward.

Per Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, rookie starting pitcher Roki Sasaki (arm) experienced arm soreness following his start against the Arizona Diamondbacks last Friday. Roberts noted that the team is "sorting out" whether it will require a trip to the injured list. On the bright side, it doesn't seem to be too severe, but a trip to the IL is an unfavorable outcome regardless -- particularly when his fastball has recently dipped into the low 90s. Sasaki has struggled early on while adjusting to big-league hitting -- that, combined with the recent injury, makes him a risky proposition for the time being. Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior reported that the team is working on aspects of the right-hander's mechanics, which will hopefully clean up his dreadful 14.3% walk rate. Expect an update on him soon.