A smile started to form on the face of Dodgers closer Roki Sasaki as he described his disposition in the bullpen.
“Every time,” Sasaki said, “I’m praying the starter will pitch a complete game.”
The Japanese speakers in the Dodger Stadium interview room broke into laughter.
The overwhelming performance of the Dodgers in this postseason has created an atmosphere in which even the famously introverted Sasaki feels comfortable joking in front of reporters.
With a 3-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers at Dodger Stadium on Thursday, the Dodgers extended their lead in the National League Championship Series to three games to none.
Read more: Dodgers capitalize on their chances to beat Brewers and take 3-0 NLCS lead
They improved to 8-1 in these playoffs.
The only reason there’s any doubt whether the Dodgers will repeat as World Series champions is because of their heart-attack-inducing bullpen, and now that group has started taking shape under the guidance of manager Dave Roberts.
What felt like wishful thinking has become an actual roadmap to victory, with Alex Vesia and Blake Treinen taking down key outs late in the game before giving way to Sasaki, the converted starter with a 100-mph fastball and vanishing forkball.
The organization’s vision came together in Game 3, as the bullpen was entrusted with covering the 3 ⅓ innings that remained after starter Tyler Glasnow’s removal.
With Vesia recording two outs and Treinen taking down two more, Roberts had to find a bridge to Sasaki. He called on Anthony Banda, who pitched just once in the three previous weeks.
Banda pitched a perfect eighth inning against the heart of the Brewers’ order, retiring Brice Turang, William Contreras and Christian Yelich in succession. The night ended with Sasaki becoming the first pitcher to register each of his first three career saves in the postseason.
“The thing about our guys is they’re battle tested,” Roberts said, “and I’ve never lost faith in them.”
The truth was, he didn’t have a choice.
Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates, the team’s two high-priced bullpen additions from the offseason, aren’t on the active roster.
The dynamic forced Roberts to continue riding Vesia, who near the end of the regular season looked as if he could be running out of gas after making a career-high 68 appearances. Roberts also had to continue depending on the 37-year-old Treinen, who last month was described by a rival scout as “finished.”
Perhaps the most significant wager placed by Roberts and the front office was on Sasaki, who had no previous experience pitching out of the bullpen.
As overpowering as Sasaki was in his two relief appearances in the final week of the regular season, as breathtaking as he was in closing out the NL wild-card series against the Cincinnati Reds, the Dodgers couldn’t be certain what they could expect from him.
Their fears were realized in Game 1 of this series. Four days removed from a three-inning relief appearance against the Phillies in the NLDS, Sasaki nearly blew a two-run lead he inherited from Blake Snell in the ninth inning. Treinen replaced Sasaki with two outs and recorded the final out in the 2-1 victory.
Was Sasaki exhausted?
“Physically, there was no problem,” Sasaki said. “However, without me realizing it, I think my delivery probably crumbled and something was a little off.”
Sasaki said he spent the two days between Games 1 and 3 working on slowing down his delivery.
The first pitch he threw on Thursday night was a ball to Andrew Vaughn, but the pitch was clocked at 99.7 mph. He touched 99.8 mph later in the at-bat.
Vaughn was retired on a spectacular defensive play by shortstop Mookie Betts. Sal Frelick popped up. Caleb Durbin struck out.
This being Sasaki’s sixth postseason game, the performance temporarily subsided concerns about the right-hander’s ability to withstand an October workload. Dodger Stadium could resume celebrating him.
In a short time, Sasaki has become one of the team’s most popular players, with chants of “Ro-ki” frequently breaking out while he is on the mound.
He emerges from the bullpen to “Bailalo Rocky,” a song by Yoan Retro and Ariadne Arana. Sasaki revealed the song was pushed on to him by reserve infielder Miguel Rojas, who noticed that “Rocky” said with a Latin American accent sounds similar to Sasaki’s first name.
Read more: Plaschke: Are these Dodgers the best postseason team in baseball history? They will be
“From the start of the season, especially at Dodger Stadium, I couldn’t pitch the way I wanted,” Sasaki said. “Since I came back (from the injured list) as a reliever and started performing in a way that better represents who I am, I’ve seen the scenery gradually change. I’m thinking that will lead to something in the future.”
Not only for him but also for the Dodgers.
Considering how thoroughly they have outplayed their opponents in this postseason, how great would the Dodgers be if they had a half-decent bullpen?
With Sasaki closing, and with Treinen and Vesia in front of him, they could be on the verge of finding out.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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