Roki Sasaki pitches seven strong innings as Dodgers beat Mets

Roki Sasaki gave the Dodgers exactly the kind of start that can matter in October, working seven strong innings in a 4-2 win over the Mets at Citi Field. He struck out nine, earned his fourth victory of the season and turned a marquee National League matchup into another reminder that Los Angeles has a starter capable of carrying a game deep.

The Dodgers won Friday night, July 24, in New York after Sasaki allowed an early home run and then limited the Mets to just two other hits over seven innings. His command held long enough to protect the bullpen and keep the game in hand until Kyle Tucker broke it open with a two-run homer in the eighth. Tucker’s blast ended an 80-plate appearance homer drought and gave Los Angeles breathing room after Sasaki had already controlled the game’s rhythm.

For Sasaki, the outing added another data point to a transition that has been watched closely since he arrived with international acclaim and a reputation for elite upside. A recent change in his pitching mechanics has helped him continue to deliver for the Dodgers, and seven innings against a dangerous opponent is the kind of workload Los Angeles needs from a pitcher it expects to lean on in the postseason. The nine strikeouts reinforced the swing-and-miss profile that makes him more than a power arm in the regular season.

The result also carried weight in the National League picture. A game graphic tied to the matchup showed the Dodgers at 66-38 and the Mets at 43-61, a snapshot of two clubs moving in sharply different directions despite the attention and expectations surrounding both. For Los Angeles, Sasaki’s outing fit the larger shape of a club built to win now. For New York, it was another night where the lineup and the rotation could not match one of the league’s top contenders.