ET on FOX. But what should we take from the two teams' respective hot starts? Thanks to injury, 2025 rookie Roki Sasaki has just 54 regular-season innings under his belt as well as another 10.2 in the postseason.

While his ERA was sparkling out of the bullpen, he still struck out just six batters and walked five, and similar troubles persist in 2026. How long can the Dodgers stick with Sasaki in the rotation if his control and command issues continue? Rowan Kavner: They’re intent on letting him work out his issues in the big leagues, despite the control problems that persist.

They can survive Sasaki’s volatility when Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani and Tyler Glasnow are excelling atop the rotation — combined, that trio has a 1.91 ERA with 91 strikeouts and 18 walks this year — and when Justin Wrobleski is 3-0 with a 1.88 ERA as the team’s sixth starter. Despite Sasaki’s unseemly 6.11 ERA and 1.87 WHIP, the Dodgers have the best starters’ ERA and WHIP in the National League. Those numbers should get even better when Blake Snell returns sometime next month.

So, while I think Sasaki should either be in the bullpen or in the minors in a more controlled environment working on his erratic command and the development of his third pitch, it doesn’t sound like that will happen. Even when Snell is activated, the Dodgers, at least right now, are saying Sasaki won’t go to the bullpen. The control issues are concerning and ongoing, but at least holding his velocity in the upper-90s and missing more bats than he did last year.

With top pitching prospect River Ryan currently on the shelf with a hamstring issue (and with the Dodgers being careful about Ryan’s innings after he missed last year recovering from Tommy John surgery), there aren’t a lot of obvious alternatives knocking down the door at the moment. Deesha Thosar: The Dodgers have the type of depth that other executives dream about, making it a no-brainer to let Sasaki work out his troubles and give him a long leash, at that. It’s not like Sasaki is that much of a detriment that he’s throwing the Dodgers’ bullpen out of whack.

Though he’s allowed multiple runs in his last three starts, and is having trouble issuing walks, he’s averaging four-plus innings pitched each time out, which is manageable for now. In the meantime, Los Angeles can figure out whether Sasaki belongs in the rotation or the bullpen and hope something clicks to let him settle into the former. Sasaki’s command issues are a problem, no doubt.

That 14.1% walk rate is up from last year. But, in a vacuum, that’s not hurting the club’s chances to compete in October. The only real red flag to watch out for with the young right-hander is any potential dip in velocity.

His fastball lives in the upper 90s, and he’s able to repeat his mechanics while still generating swings and misses. So, now he has to settle in, pitch with confidence and find a balance that lets him thrive, not overthink, on the mound. Outfielder Andy Pages took a leap last summer, producing nearly a four-win season for the Dodgers that was overshadowed by their lineup of stars.

He’s off to a scorching start in 2026: is this another jump in production, or just a hot April? Kavner: Pages is prone to these wild swings in which he’s running scorching hot for a few weeks and then ice cold for the next few. Last year, he had a .544 OPS with three extra-base hits through his first 20 games before producing a 1.056 OPS with 11 extra-base hits over his next 20 games.

We might be seeing something similar now, but in the opposite order. Pages had a 1.186 OPS with nine extra-base hits through his first 16 games before falling back down to earth over the last week, registering a .500 OPS with no extra-base hits over his last eight games. So, no, I don’t expect him to be challenging for the batting crown at season’s end as he’s doing right now, and I do think he’ll have a month or two where he cools off considerably before heating back up again.

But I also think this production is at least a bit more sustainable. His hard-hit rate and average exit velocity have skyrocketed from last year, and while he’s still below league average in walk rate, he’s at least shown more of a willingness to take a free pass when it’s given. Pages' tendency to chase will make him vulnerable to ebbs and flows throughout the year, but he’s shown a slight improvement in his selectivity, and I think he could be poised for a career year with an OPS+ well above the 115 mark he finished with last season.

Thosar: It’s always a positive sign to look at a third-year player’s Baseball Savant page and see flashes of bright red in all the right places. For Pages, those key areas setting him apart from the pack are a