Jackson Chourio took Roki Sasaki’s 101.0-mph fastball and an 89.3-mph splitter for consecutive strikes. The third pitch, a 91.5-mph splitter well below the zone, drew a blocked swinging strike. Will Smith completed the out with a throw to first, ending the fourth inning.
Sasaki held Milwaukee scoreless on 14 pitches, allowing no hits and one walk with one strikeout. The Brewers led 3–2 during his inning before going on to win NLCS Game 2, 7–4, at American Family Field on October 12.
The inning’s success required taken strikes and grounders as well as the final miss. Sasaki generated only one miss in six swing attempts, so the hitless line does not describe an inning dominated by swing-and-miss pitching.
Season repertoire and Game 2
Scale: 0–100%. Gray: regular season. Blue: Game 2.
Four-seam fastball
Change: +20.5 percentage points.
Splitter
Change: +4.5 percentage points.
Slider
Change: -25.0 percentage points.
A fastball-heavy inning against a thin relief baseline
Nine of the 14 pitches were four-seamers, a 64.3% share, and five were splitters. The fastball averaged 99.6 mph and the splitter 90.0. His closest role-matched regular-season baseline comprises only 48 pitches in three Dodgers relief appearances, September 22 through September 27.
That small relief sample used four-seamers at 43.8% and splitters at 31.2%, with other classifications making up the remainder. Sasaki’s full regular season contained 2,100 pitches in 26 appearances, but most were starts. Keeping the three relief outings visible is preferable to treating the larger starting workload as an equivalent one-inning assignment.
The four-seamer supplied two called strikes but no misses in four swings. The splitter supplied one called strike and the final miss in two swings. These six attempts do not establish which pitch will be most effective next time, but they distinguish how the two classifications contributed here.
Jackson Chourio: inning 4
A walk did not become a scoring inning
Cooper Pratt grounded out on two pitches before Sal Frelick drew a five-pitch walk. David Hamilton then grounded into a forceout, replacing Frelick at first. Sasaki finished Chourio with the fastball-splitter sequence rather than allowing that runner to extend the inning.
The two balls in play averaged 89.9 mph, and one reached 95 mph. Neither became a hit, with the infield completing both outs. Sasaki’s earlier postseason appearance on October 4 also ended hitless, but took 36 pitches for two innings with two walks and one strikeout. Different lengths and hitter opportunities limit a simple rate comparison.
Game 2 demonstrated a scoreless inning built around a harder fastball, taken strikes and ground-ball outs. The next useful question is whether Sasaki can maintain that combination while reducing free baserunners, rather than expecting a one-miss inning to imply sustained strikeout dominance.
Inning samples in context
| Inning | Pitches | Cumulative | Four-seam fastball mph | Measured n | Outs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 14 | 14 | 99.6 | 9 | 3 |
Every pitch: 14 of 14
Search a hitter, select an inning or pitch type, then inspect a pitch number. Pitch result and completed plate-appearance outcome are separate columns. The table scrolls within its border.
14 of 14 pitches
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| Pitch | Inning | Hitter | Count before | Type | mph | Pitch result | Completed PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Cooper Pratt | 0–0 | FF | 101.0 | Called Strike | Groundout | |
| 4 | Cooper Pratt | 0–1 | FF | 100.9 | In play, out(s) | Groundout | |
| 4 | Sal Frelick | 0–0 | FF | 99.8 | Ball | Walk | |
| 4 | Sal Frelick | 1–0 | FF | 99.7 | Foul | Walk | |
| 4 | Sal Frelick | 1–1 | FS | 91.1 | Ball | Walk | |
| 4 | Sal Frelick | 2–1 | FF | 99.5 | Ball | Walk | |
| 4 | Sal Frelick | 3–1 | FF | 99.8 | Ball | Walk | |
| 4 | David Hamilton | 0–0 | FF | 95.5 | Foul Bunt | Forceout | |
| 4 | David Hamilton | 0–1 | FS | 89.2 | Foul Bunt | Forceout | |
| 4 | David Hamilton | 0–2 | FS | 88.9 | Ball | Forceout | |
| 4 | David Hamilton | 1–2 | FF | 99.6 | In play, out(s) | Forceout | |
| 4 | Jackson Chourio | 0–0 | FF | 101.0 | Called Strike | Strikeout | |
| 4 | Jackson Chourio | 0–1 | FS | 89.3 | Called Strike | Strikeout | |
| 4 | Jackson Chourio | 0–2 | FS | 91.5 | Swinging Strike (Blocked) | Strikeout |
Sources, definitions and limitations
The official final MLB record supplies events, final calls and the line. Baseball Savant’s complete Game 2 feed supplies all 14 physical pitches. Pitch ID, order, classification and pre-pitch count reconcile, including final ABS decisions. These records contain 4 batters, 3 integer outs and 1 strikeouts. In baseball notation, .1 means one out and .2 two outs. Source records current as of October 13, 2026.
The Statcast Search baseline is 48 physical pitches in 3 regular-season relief appearances for Los Angeles Dodgers, 2026-09-22 through 2026-09-27. Each game total reconciles with the official appearance log. The target game and postseason work are excluded. Same club and role in the 2026 regular season.
Whiff rate means misses divided by physical swing attempts. Swinging strikes, blocked swinging strikes, caught foul tips and missed bunts count as conventional tracking whiffs. A caught foul tip involves bat contact; it is kept distinct from a literal swing that misses the ball. Fouls, bunt attempts and balls put into play enter the attempt denominator. Both outing and baseline use the same definitions. Called strikes and completed strikeout plate appearances are separate. Chase uses ball-center coordinates outside a 17-inch-wide rectangle and each pitch’s recorded vertical boundaries. Only complete coordinates enter the zone denominator. Savant’s separate zone flag remains in the CSV and detail rather than replacing that geometric definition.
Speed is mph, spin rpm, extension feet and movement inches. Induced vertical break describes movement relative to a gravity-only path. Location and zone boundaries are feet in catcher view. Numbered markers preserve exact coordinates and are not ball size. Release, location, spin, extension and movement measurements are complete for all outing pitches. Contact and expected-outcome measurements can be unavailable and remain missing in the detail and CSV. 2 of 2 balls put into play have measured exit speed. Hard-hit means at least 95 mph; the baseline has 5 measured contacts among 5. Expected outcomes are Savant model estimates, not actual results. The comparisons are descriptive and do not establish intention, fatigue, injury or a durable trend.
