Straight Talk: Blister leaves Sasaki on sidelines in 4th inning of loss to Braves

"Straight Talk" is a regular feature in which The Sporting Tribune's John E. Gibson offers a full translation of media availability with Dodgers Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki. He will also help translate when Clippers star Rui Hachimura and L.A. Galaxy captain Maya Yoshida are asked questions in Japanese.

The job of interpreters in the heat of the moment is difficult without the ability to write down questions and answers and re-hear responses for proper context. That's where John comes in to help. John currently works as a Japanese-English interpreter and covered pro baseball in Japan for about 20 years. His experience as a sports reporter includes stints at The Orange County Register, The Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, The Redlands Daily Facts, The Yomiuri Shimbun’s English newspaper in Tokyo and The Epoch Times. 

ATLANTA – A blister on his pitching hand forces Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Roki Sasaki to exit Wednesday’s game in the fourth inning of an eventual 6-5 walk-off loss to the host Atlanta Braves. Sasaki departed with a pair of runners on, and they soon scored to complete his line with four runs allowed on six hits and two walks with three strikeouts over 3.1 innings. 

Q: Roki, we saw that you exited the game in the fourth inning with a blister on your finger. When did this come up and how long has it been bothering you?

Sasaki: There was no sign, it came out of nowhere when I was throwing to the first batter. And it just started to get bigger after that until it was just too much.

Q: Do you have any concerns that this might impact your next start or do you think this is something you’ll be able to manage and heal in between starts?

Sasaki: As fa as that goes, I think I’ll be talking to the trainer and coaches after this.

Q: So, just to be clear, did you have anything on your finger the week before or leading up to this start?

Sasaki: Nothing. During the game as well, there was nothing. It was really out of nowhere in the fourth inning, it was suddenly there.

Q: Have you ever experienced just either dealing with blisters, pitching through blisters or anything like that?

Sasaki: When I was in Japan, there were a number of times when I had a blister, but for the most part, there was a warning sign. But this is the first time to have something come on suddenly like this.

Q: Which finger is it?

Sasaki: It’s on the middle finger.

Q: How did it affect your pitching – your grip and feel for pitches, that last inning in particular?

Sasaki: For the most part, there was some impact. I was able to get the skin back over it and continue to pitch at first, but because of the way it torn my skin, I felt like it would be tough to throw the slider and some of my other pitches.