Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki exited Wednesday's game against the Atlanta Braves in the fourth inning after just 66 pitches. After Sasaki's exit, the Dodgers revealed a blister on the right-hander's right middle finger caused his departure. Sasaki has been one of the better pitchers in the Dodgers' rotation since the All-Star break, though struggled against the Braves through his 3.1 innings of work.
The right-hander allowed six hits and issued two walks on the outing, striking out three batters. Two runners scored under his watch, with two more coming across after he exited the game, bringing his earned run total to four on the outing. The Dodgers still held a lead when Sasaki left the game, though, as a clutch, one-run single from Hunter Feduccia and a two-run blast from Tommy Edman had them leading the Braves by one.
Heading into his start on Wednesday, Sasaki had a 4.42 ERA on the season, though he dropped it considerably following the All-Star break. Sasaki had a 2.31 ERA through his six starts since the All-Star Game, striking out 34 batters in 35 innings pitched. Despite his exit from Wednesday's game, Sasaki may not miss too much time depending on the severity of the blister.
In the meantime, though, the Dodgers could survey their options as they head towards Sasaki's next scheduled start. If Sasaki needs an IL stint while recovering from this blister, the Dodgers have a few options to fill in the rotation. With Sasaki on the sidelines, their rotation consists of four players: Blake Snell, Tarik Skubal, Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
They're likely to welcome Shohei Ohtani back to the lineup within the next week, so they'll need one more player to fill in the final spot of their traditional six-man rotation. Their three options for the final spot have all served in the rotation this season: Eric Lauer, Emmet Sheehan and Justin Wrobleski. Lauer is currently a bullpen option with the team and could seamlessly move into the rotation from the 'pen, Sheehan is currently in Triple-A but had been with the team for the entire year prior to his recent demotion and Wrobleski is facing hitters as he works back from an injury in his throwing arm.
Even if Sasaki needs to miss time due to his blister, the Dodgers constructed their team to be able to deal with setbacks such as these.
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