NEW YORK — Trey Yesavage and Roki Sasaki are barely babes in the woods when it comes to Major League Baseball experience.
Which only makes their postseason success more impressive.
Both in the minors last month, Yesavage and Sasaki are suddenly two of the most important pitchers in the World Series as the Toronto Blue Jays take on the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers beginning Friday night.
Neither one has turned 24 yet or appeared in more than 17 big league games.
“It’s remarkable, really. You’re talking about a big stage,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said during the playoffs when asked about several green rookies excelling this October - including Yesavage and Sasaki.
“I think players have kind of been developed a little bit differently over the past handful of years, and I think that they probably exude a little bit more confidence at a young age.”
The 22-year-old Yesavage, a first-round draft pick by Toronto in July 2024 from East Carolina University, rocketed through four minor league levels this season. He struck out 160 batters in 98 innings combined at Dunedin, Vancouver, New Hampshire and Buffalo before making his major league debut Sept. 15 with the Blue Jays in a heated pennant race.
“Every stop of the way, I learned something new,” Yesavage said.
The right-hander from Pennsylvania went 1-0 with a 3.21 ERA in three outings totaling 14 innings - then found himself on the mound against Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees as the No. 2 starter in Toronto’s playoff rotation.
“You have to kind of look at what the stuff is doing in real time,” Schneider said. “Will this work? And if it works, you go for it.”
How did Yesavage handle such pressure? Featuring a dominant splitter from his unusually high release point, he set a franchise postseason record by striking out 11 in 5 1/3 hitless innings to earn a Division Series win.
Not too shabby for a guy who gave up seven runs and seven hits over 7 1/3 innings against Yankees minor leaguers when he faced their Double-A team in June and Triple-A affiliate in August.
“You’ve got to treat it like you’re in control and you’re confident in your own stuff,” Yesavage said. “If you’re up there worried about the hitter and his talent, you’re not going to execute how you want to.”
Two weeks later, the poised Yesavage escaped a pair of bases-loaded jams by inducing double-play grounders against Seattle in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series. He took a shutout into the sixth inning of a 6-2 win that continued Toronto’s season.
Yesavage’s three career regular-season appearances were the fewest in postseason history for a starting pitcher facing elimination. His two playoff wins eclipse his total at Double-A and Triple-A combined.
Next, he figures to receive an early World Series assignment against Shohei Ohtani and the powerhouse Dodgers.
“I think that teams do a good job of welcoming guys in,” Schneider said. “It’s kind of our job to make sure the transition is as easy as it can be, and veteran players making it easy for young guys to come into an environment that’s really stressful. I think that players have really gotten a lot better a lot quicker.”
Back in spring training, hardly anyone anticipated Yesavage reaching the majors this season - but much was expected of the 23-year-old Sasaki after his ballyhooed arrival from Japan.
A tantalizing starter in his home country, he began the season in Los Angeles’ rotation but struggled to adjust and throw strikes. Sasaki looked sad and teary-eyed in the dugout following a rough Dodger Stadium debut, and he went 1-1 with a 4.72 ERA in eight starts before landing on the injured list in May with a right shoulder impingement.
After all that hype, Sasaki almost became an afterthought. Five rehab starts with Triple-A Oklahoma City yielded unimpressive results - but then he came out of the bullpen twice in the minors and something clicked.
The right-hander finally rejoined the Dodgers on Sept. 24, made two terrific relief appearances and quickly found himself closing playoff games, stabilizing a suspect Los Angeles bullpen with his 100 mph fastball.
“As a starter, I understand that there’s always ups and downs. So, I kind of take that same approach with pitching as a reliever,” Sasaki said through a translator after saving Game 3 of the NLCS against Milwaukee.
Sasaki has a 1.13 ERA in seven October outings covering eight innings. He is the first pitcher to earn each of his first three career saves in the postseason since saves became an official statistic in 1969.
And, like other closers, he even has his own catchy and popular entrance song at Dodger Stadium: “Bailalo Rocky,” picked by teammate Miguel Rojas.
“His growth has been certainly not linear,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “For him to kind of self-reflect, get healthy and put himself back on the radar for our 2025 ballclub speaks to his fight. And I don’t think anyone could have foreseen him in this role in April or May. So, I give a lot of credit to Roki to kind of get to that point. And now he can look back at 2025 and look fondly at it.”
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