Dodgers Catcher Calls Out Roki Sasaki's Signature Pitch for Being 'Inconsistent'

Los Angeles Dodgers backup catcher Dalton Rushing was honest about Roki Sasaki's signature pitch, his forkball, during his most recent outing.

“It’s just inconsistent,” Rushing said to Dylan Hernandez of the California Post. “It’s a pitch that if you can’t strike it, it starts to give the opposing team the opportunity to just lay off of it every time you throw it. Maybe there’s a couple technique things we can figure out in his delivery to strike it a little more, or maybe it’s just a mindset [that] you don’t have to throw your best splitter every pitch.”

Sasaki's forkball hasn't looked efficient in 2026, far from the success the fireballer once had with the pitch overseas in Nippon Professional Baseball. It was considered a wipeout pitch and was elite because of its high velocity.

This season, Sasaki's forkball has caused some concern. The latest example coming against the Washington Nationals, where the right-hander missed the mark so badly that he allowed James Wood to hit a three-run homer off of it.

Where was Rushing hoping Sasaki would place the forkball?

“I wanted it in the dirt,” Rushing said. “He could have bounced it in the grass, I don’t care. Look, it’s part of pitching. You’re going to make mistakes. You’re going to lose a couple, but at the same time, it’s a maturity thing and hopefully he learns from it.

"You usually try to take advantage of 0-2 counts, especially with a guy that’s been struggling with plate discipline.”

Sasaki still reached five innings in his latest start against the Nationals, which is what manager Dave Roberts expected of the right-hander. He proceeded to retire the side following that fourth inning mishap.

“I saw potential growth,” Roberts said following Sasaki's start. “I think you could argue his last inning was his best inning that he threw the baseball. To respond from that, to get to that five-inning mark, I thought was important.”

“I told him afterwards — I don’t care about the line score, I care about the pitches in totality,” Roberts added. “And those ones that we want back, we’ll get those back. We’ll be mindful of those. But for him to give us that extra inning is going to help us win a couple games in Toronto.”

The 24-year-old told reporters that the use of his forkball, or lack thereof in 2026, was not related to loss of confidence in the pitch.

Sasaki pointed to Rushing as to why the forkball hasn't been utilized frequently.

“I’m not the one deciding,” Sasaki said in Japanese.

Sasaki will take the mound for his third start of 2026 this weekend against the Texas Rangers. While it doesn't seem like the organization has any plans to send the right-hander to the minors even if he struggles, Sasaki will have to find his stride sooner rather than later.

Through two starts this season, Sasaki has pitched just nine innings, sporting a 7.00 ERA.