'Tanner Scott may not see the mound again' - Fans go wild as Japanese rookie emerges as Dodgers closer with first career save in NLDS Game 1

The Los Angeles Dodgers have found a new role for rookie pitcher Roki Sasaki after the Japanese hurler was asked to pitch in relief in the NLDS Game 1 against the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday.

Sasaki, who had a tough start to his Dodgers tenure, spending most of his time on the injured list and in the minors, headed into the series opener with just 10 starts under his belt.

However, the rookie delivered a spotless performance, pitching a scoreless ninth inning in his first outing from the bullpen for the Dodgers.

Dodgers fans reacted to Sasaki earning the save on his first postseason start as a reliever.

"Poor Tanner Scott!!! May not see the mound again this year after what just happened. What a shame!!!"

"He said in the interview after the game he didn’t have his stuff going today but forced his will in the zone."

"Slow heartbeat. Doesn’t seem to get rattled. DThe odgers need a dawg in the bullpen again."

"11 pitches, 9 strikes. Sasaki looked unhittable, closing it out. If that’s the rookie’s baseline, LA’s bullpen just got scarier."

"He said in the interview after the game he didn’t have his stuff going today but forced his will in the zone."

Roki Sasaki reflects on pitching out of bullpen as a long-term option for Dodgers

Sasaki made history after retiring second baseman Bryson Stott for the last out of the game as his compatriot Shohei Ohtani earned the win, making them only the second Japanese-born pitchers to earn a win and save in a postseason game.

“The difficulty of pitching in relief is, I’m sure in the regular season, just the way that I’m warming up, it takes a while to warm up,” Sasaki said. “In a playoff format, I think I’m able to do that because I do have the stamina as a starting pitcher.

"But over the course of a longer season, I don’t think it’s a sustainable way for me to prepare to pitch each postseason game as a reliever.”

Apart from Sasaki, the Dodgers are also planning to use starting pitchers Tyler Glasnow and Clayton Kershaw from the bullpen this postseason.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash