Dodgers Notes: LA Officially Releases 2 Players, Predicted to Land Japanese Star, Roki Sasaki Called Out

The Los Angeles Dodgers released two players during the first week of April, per the team's transaction log. Of the two right-handed hurlers, one was released on the Double-A level while the other from the Dominican Summer League Dodgers.

In other news, the Dodgers have been predicted to land a star Japanese slugger.

Though the would-be move will have to wait until his contract is up, Dodgers insiders Jack Harris and Dylan Hernandez of the California Post recently predicted a new third baseman would potentially join the back-to-back defending champions in Japanese star Munetaka Murakami.

After launching 246 home runs in Nippon Professional Baseball, the 26-year-old inked a two-year, $34 million deal with the Chicago White Sox, making him a free agent in 2028.

Finally, Dodgers right-hander Roki Sasaki was recently called out by catcher Dalton Rushing due to his inconsistencies with his forkball.

“It’s just inconsistent,” Rushing said. “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.”

Inconsistency is what plagued Sasaki in 2025, posting a 4.72 ERA before a shoulder impingement sidelined him for a little over four months. Upon his return, he was transitioned to the bullpen and was nothing short of electric, especially come October.

His final two regular season appearances (which were his first bullpen nods in MLB) consisted of four strikeouts across two total innings as he allowed just a single hit. During the postseason, Sasaki totaled a minuscule 0.84 ERA across his nine appearances (10.2 innings).

The young right-hander is once again suffering from early season struggles, but only time will if he can bring the same postseason brilliance in 2026.

Here’s all the latest Dodgers news and stories (click the headline for the full article):

Dodgers Cut Ties With 2 Players, Including Former Top Prospect

Dodgers Predicted to Land Star Japanese Slugger in Future Free Agent Move

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

Dodgers' Dave Roberts Paid Hyeseong Kim $100 After Losing Bet

Dodgers' Hyeseong Kim Earns Praise From Dave Roberts After Strong Start

Dodgers vs Rangers: Series Preview, Key Injuries, Bold Predictions for Games April 10-12

Dodgers' Dave Roberts Reveals How He'll Navigate Dalton Rushing, Will Smith Dilemma

Dodgers Tweets of the Day

When Kershaw’s talking about the Dodgers ace but he’s not talking about himself 🥲 pic.twitter.com/sJ3G28MKfb
— Nate (@dodgernate) April 10, 2026

Genuinely couldnt tell if Vladdy was mad at first 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/GDofqYg6Nn
— Mr Big Bets (@Bigbetsbrand123) April 9, 2026

え、大谷さん昨日の当てられた件、
結構叫んでたのか。。

ここまで取り乱してるのは初めて観たレベル。

今日の投球の乱れもその辺の関係、、
いや、会見でもその話触れてなかったしないか😇明後日も何事もなく元気に試合に出てくれますように🙏#大谷翔平 pic.twitter.com/ILjrxDzwdd
— sho谷@大谷思想のゴミ拾い&寄付で野球人口増加｜ゴミ拾い「70」日継続中｜累計ゴミ「4000」個 (@shotani117) April 9, 2026