Roki Sasaki taking next step in rehab; 'no pain' in shoulder - ESPN

LOS ANGELES — Roki Sasaki, finally ramping up after spending the past three months on the injured list, said Tuesday he had «no pain» in his right shoulder and expressed confidence in his ability to regain fastball velocity, which began to tail off before he was shut down.

«I feel better about being able to throw harder, especially because I'm completely pain free,» Sasaki said through an interpreter. «With that being said, I do have to just face live hitters and see how my mechanics, you know, hold. Just being consistent; being able to do that consistently.»

Sasaki is scheduled to pitch three simulated innings at Dodger Stadium over the weekend before going on a rehab assignment. The Dodgers will stretch Sasaki back out as a starting pitcher. How he eventually fits in, though, remains to be seen.

The Dodgers' rotation is currently full, with Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow back healthy, Shohei Ohtani stretched out to at least four innings, and Clayton Kershaw, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Emmet Sheehan making up the other three spots of a six-man rotation.

Asked if he could eventually see Sasaki occupying a bullpen spot, specifically in October, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said: «I'm going to hold on that one. I do know we're going to take the 13 best pitchers. I've been a part of many postseason rosters, so we're going to take the 13 best pitchers. If Roki is a part of that in some capacity, then that would be great. And if he's not, then he won't be.»

Before that is even entertained, Sasaki simply has to perform better.

The 23-year-old right-hander arrived in the major leagues after being one of the most hyped pitchers to come out of Japan, armed with a triple-digit fastball and a mind-bending splitter. But evaluators