Dodgers Pitcher Included on Japan's WBC Roster: Report

Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) celebrates with pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) and pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (18) after winning in the eighteenth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays in game three of the 2025 MLB World Series on Oct. 27. | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

The 2026 World Baseball Classic is a few months away, but participating teams are busy finalizing their rosters for the international tournament.

Perhaps no team faces more pressure than the defending champions, Japan, which defeated the United States to win the last incarnation of the tournament in 2023.

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Japan begins pool play in the WBC in Tokyo on March 6, 2026. Three Dodgers players — two-way star Shohei Ohtani, and pitchers Roki Sasaki and Yoshinobu Yamamoto — will be counted on to lead their national team back to the mountaintop. That is, if they have the Dodgers' blessing to participate.

Although being included on Japan's preliminary roster is perhaps a formality, it is a necessary step before Ohtani, Sasaki and Yamamoto can head back to Japan in the middle of spring training.

While Ohtani and Yamamoto have already established themselves among the best baseball players on the planet, Sasaki's case is a little less straightforward.

The 24-year-old right-hander endured his second consecutive injury-plagued season with the Dodgers in 2025. He was limited to 19 games — only 10 in the regular season — and barely flashed the potential that led the Dodgers to court him in free agency last winter until the postseason.

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By then, Sasaki was pitching out of the bullpen, a role he might reprise for the Dodgers in 2026. Concerns about his workload, health, and role with the Dodgers could reasonably lead Sasaki (voluntarily or not) to skip the World Baseball Classic altogether.

Nonetheless, Sasaki is expected to be on Japan's WBC roster when it is announced, according to Francys Romero on Twitter/X.

Roki Sasaki is on Japan’s preliminary roster for the World Baseball Classic.

The 24-year-old pitcher is expected to have no issues making the final roster, per source.

— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) December 8, 2025

If Japan has internally settled on its WBC roster already, it hasn't posted that roster to the official WBC website.

Even if Sasaki is included on the roster, the Dodgers might reasonably be concerned about losing one of their key young players for up to two weeks in the middle of spring training.

WBC pool play begins in Japan on March 5. The final, should Japan advance that far, will be March 17 in Miami. Japan's first pool-play game is against Taiwan on March 6, and they will play as many as seven games before the tournament ends.

Much remains to be determined between now and then for Sasaki. If he can adhere to a similar starter's program for Japan than the one the Dodgers have outlined for him, Sasaki might be able to compete in the WBC without missing a beat.

For more Dodgers news, head over to Dodgers on SI.