Sasaki dazzles in spring debut with Dodgers

Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Roki Sasaki showed why teams were lining up to sign him this offseason during his spring debut Tuesday.

The Japanese sensation allowed two hits with one walk and five strikeouts across three scoreless innings in a 4-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. His splitter was particularly devastating, inducing seven whiffs on eight swings.

(Video source: MLB.com)

"Tonight was a big night," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said postgame, according to Dodger Insider Cary Osborne. "I just think that being under the lights in a big league ballgame, just seeing how he responded - the stuff was really good, obviously got a lot of swing and miss, and the fastball played up."

The Dodgers signed Sasaki to a contract after the 23-year-old was posted by the Chiba Lotte Marines.

"It was a mixture of excitement and nervousness, but once I was on the mound, I felt like I was able to focus and was able to pitch," Sasaki said of his outing.

Sasaki is expected to form the most talented pitching rotation in baseball this season alongside countrymen Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, and, at some point, future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw.