Chiba Lotte Marines Sasaki Rocky (23), who made fans buzz due to rumors of entering the 메이저놀이터 Major League, is having a season that does not meet expectations.
Sasaki started the game against the Chiba Lotte Marines at ZOZO Marine Stadium in Chiba Prefecture, Japan on the 8th, and won five innings with seven hits, four walks, seven strikeouts, and three runs.
With 27 wins and 14 losses and an earned run average of 2.10 in 61 games (372 ⅔ innings), Sasaki is drawing keen attention as Japan’s next-generation ace. His flagship weapon is a fastball over 160 kilometers per hour and sharp fork ball, which he is already watching in the Major League. Numerous Major League scouts will gather at the game where Sasaki will take the mound.
However, Sasaki, which caused a stir by posting a message last winter when he was not allowed to play in the Major League, has failed to meet expectations this season. He has eight wins, four losses and an earned run average of 2.43 in 15 games (89 innings). It is not a bad performance, but considering Sasaki’s name value, it is regrettable.
“Sasaki won his eighth victory of the season with seven hits, four walks, seven strikeouts, and three runs in five innings,” Japanese media Spia said on the 10th. He threw 98 pitches until the fifth inning and was pulled out. With the competition to advance to the climax series in full swing, it is difficult to say that there is no regret looking forward to the postseason after that.”
The season in which Sasaki stood out the most was in 2022. He garnered 19 strikeouts in the game against Orix on April 10, becoming the 16th perfect game in Japanese pro baseball history and the youngest ever. He then scored 14 strikeouts during eight innings in a game against Nippon Ham on April 17, challenging perfect games for two consecutive games, but Chiba Lotte, concerned about Sasaki’s injury, replaced him after the eighth inning.
Spia explained, “Compared to the time when even professional sluggers couldn’t handle them, Sasaki seems to have gone down in scale this year. The victory seems to be steady with nine wins in 2022, seven wins in 2023, and eight wins this year, but the ERA is the worst at 2.43 this year, compared to 2.02 in 2022 and 1.78 in 2023. Strikeouts per nine innings also fell sharply this year, recording 12.04, 13.35 and 10.62 in turn from 2022.”
Sasaki’s performance fell due to the lack of power of fastballs and folk balls, which are her main weapons. The batting average of her fastballs increased from 227 to 299 in 2022. The average speed of her fastballs decreased from 158.3 kilometers to 156.1 kilometers, and the swing and miss rate also decreased from 9.8 percent to 6.5 percent. The swing and miss rate of her forks also decreased from 29.4 percent to 24.3 percent. Sliders’ hit rate improved from 133.3 percent to 1227 percent, but her average speed slowed from 141.8 kilometers to 135.0 kilometers, and her swing and miss rate also decreased from 21.1 percent to 15.3 percent.
The media outlet said, “I have reduced the proportion of fastballs and forks whose hit rate has increased in this season, and I have thrown a lot of sliders. Sliders pitched just 5.0 percent of the time in 2022, but this year they increased to 23.7 percent. This may be one reason why they are posting eight wins in poor condition,” adding, “It is quite common for fastball pitchers who press and hit with pitches to increase the ratio of breaking balls as they age. However, Sasaki is only 22 years old. Moreover, when he is aiming for a major league challenge, his poor pitching is a source of anxiety.”