Dave Roberts said Roki Sasaki's first five innings on July 30, 2026, were even better than his previous start against the New York Yankees, before cramping affected him in the sixth inning. "This start for five innings was even better for me," Roberts said during a press conference.
Roberts said Sasaki's fastball command, splitter and slider were all strong through five innings, describing "the fastball command, the split command, the slider" as sharp. He noted that cramping, which he believed was in the calf, contributed to the pitcher's rough sixth inning, saying "there was some cramping in that sixth inning." Roberts referenced Sasaki's prior start against the Yankees, when his velocity had drawn scrutiny, noting that "three starts ago, you know, there's a lot of talk about his velocity."
Roberts also praised catcher Dalton Rushing's growth and the trust he is building with pitchers, stating he's "starting to build trust with those guys and them trusting what he's seeing behind the plate." He pointed to one of Rushing's swings as an example, noting that Rushing "put one of his best swings of the year on a slider down below or down and you know, was the big blow." Roberts added that the difference in Sasaki's recent performance reflects a new sense of conviction and confidence rather than a mechanical fix, explaining that "there's a lot of conviction and so it's been really good."
Asked about Sasaki's cramping after the game, Roberts acknowledged he had not been aware of it during the outing. "I don't know. I just found out that he's cramping. So somewhere in the legs," he said.
Looking ahead to the pitching schedule, Roberts announced that Edgardo Henriquez will start as an opener in a bullpen game, saying "we are going to open Edgardo Henriquez. Yeah, it's going to be a bullpen game." He also confirmed that Yoshinobu Yamamoto will start on Saturday, stating simply, "Saturday it'll be Yamamoto."