Roki Sasaki to start Dodgers’ second half opener

Lauer stranded a runner in the first inning, then gave up back-to-back solo homers to Thomas Saggese and Ramón Urías in the second. The Cardinals piled on five more runs on five hits, a walk, and a hit batter in the third inning. Lauer wouldn’t make it out for the fourth, ending his day at 63 pitches. He struck out two. The 31-year-old left-hander will look to bounce back when he takes a 5.23 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and a 72/35 K/BB ratio across 108 1/3 innings into a start against the Nationals in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Wrobleski, an All-Star starter this year, is expected to spend the rest of the season in the pen after missing the last two weeks with forearm inflammation. He allowed one run in 1 1/3 innings in his only rehab appearance for Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Roberts said before the game that Ohtani still isn’t feeling 100 percent physically due to ongoing knee and biceps issues, and that if any other player was dealing with those same ailments the club wouldn’t let them pitch either. What has yet to be determined is whether or not the Dodgers will shut Ohtani down from pitching for the remainder of the season. They’re going to see how he feels when they return to Los Angeles next week before making that determination.

It sounds highly unlikely that Ohtani will make his return to Los Angeles’ rotation this weekend based on Roberts adding that the two-way superstar isn’t feeling 100 percent physically due to ongoing left knee and right biceps issues. The club is expected to make a final decision following Saturday afternoon’s contest in Detroit. Regardless, it’ll be Tyler Glasnow doing the heavy lifting on Sunday. The general expectation remains that Ohtani will return to the Dodgers’ rotation in the near future, but it doesn’t sound imminent after Friday’s abbreviated bullpen session didn’t go exactly as anticipated. Simply put, the franchise can’t really afford to take any chances with the postseason right around the corner. There should be additional clarity on his status in the coming days.

At this point, it’s nearly impossible to predict what comes next for the two-way superstar. Ohtani could potentially take the ball as an opener for Sunday’s series finale against the Tigers, with Tyler Glasnow following in a bulk-relief role, or the Dodgers could push him back to Tuesday’s series opener against the Cardinals. His return to Los Angeles’ rotation feels imminent, even if the exact timing remains murky. There should be some much-needed clarity by the end of the weekend.

The 28-year-old right-hander racked up eight strikeouts on the night while issuing one base on balls. The lone tally against him — and the only run scored by either team — came on a solo blast off the bat of Drake Baldwin in the opening inning. Unfortunately for Yamamoto and for fantasy managers, that was enough to do him in on Thursday. He got a whopping 20 swings and misses on 105 pitches on the night, registering a CSW of 30 percent. Now 12-8 on the season, he’ll carry a 2.56 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and a 153/36 K/BB ratio (158 innings) into Thursday’s matchup against the Cardinals.

Sasaki was pulled from Wednesday’s start against the Braves after the blister issue cropped up. No word yet on how long he’ll be shelved for, but he’ll miss at least one trip through the Dodgers’ rotation. Eric Lauer will move back from the bullpen to take his place in the club’s six-man rotation for the time being.

Roberts added that Eric Lauer will take Sasaki’s spot in the rotation. The 24-year-old was removed from Wednesday’s start against the Braves after 3 1/3 innings due to a significant blister that cropped up unexpectedly on his right middle finger. He’s going to miss at least one turn through the rotation and could wind up sidelined until mid-September.

Sasaki departed with one out in the fourth inning after throwing 66 pitches (42 strikes). He was charged with four runs on six hits, including a solo homer by Matt Olson. He struck out three and issued two walks. The 24-year-old hasn’t dealt with blister issues this season, which means that his exit was likely precautionary. There should be an update on his status in the coming days. His next start will be against the Cardinals on Wednesday.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Ohtani is trending towards starting against the Tigers on Sunday. There should be a definitive update on his status leading into the weekend but all signs point to the generational talent making his first start for Los Angeles since early July. It sounds like there’s a possibility that Ohtani piggybacks with Tyler Glasnow in some capacity for workload reasons this weekend.