Roki Sasaki shows more signs of progress in his third rehab start.

Dodgers rookie right-handed pitcher Roki Sasaki continues to make strides during his rehab assignment, displaying increased velocity in his third start for the Triple-A Oklahoma City team today. Sasaki’s four-seam fastball averaged 96.4 mph with a peak speed of 98.8 mph, an improvement compared to his last start on Thursday. The 23-year-old threw 3.2 innings against the Memphis Redbirds (the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate), recording 4 strikeouts, 2 walks, allowing 5 hits and 3 earned runs, using a total of 75 pitches (47 strikes).

Earlier this week, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the goal is for Sasaki to pitch 4 innings and possibly reach the fifth. Sasaki is expected to need at least one more rehab start before being considered for a return to the major league club.

After a challenging first rehab start where he struggled to pitch 2 innings and failed to generate any swinging strikes on his fastball, Sasaki appears to have made some progress. Today, although his four-seam fastball only produced 2 swinging strikes (an area still needing clear improvement), his signature forkball has regained form, generating 7 swinging strikes in total.

While extending Sasaki’s innings is a primary goal of his rehab, the Dodgers also believe it is equally important that he returns to the majors confident in his ability to attack hitters at his best.

The Dodgers currently have a strong six-man rotation including Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Clayton Kershaw, Shohei Ohtani, and Emmet Sheehan. Given the current situation, they are in a good position to give Sasaki the necessary time for a strong comeback.

“I don’t think he’s fully there yet, but he’s getting closer step by step,” Roberts said before Sasaki’s most recent outing, “and performance is the best way to build confidence.”