Los Angeles (AP): The right-hander put on his white No. 18 jersey and blue cap in the center field pavilion, little over six years after Yoshinobu Yamamoto, sitting in the boisterous Dodger Stadium seats watching a playoff game, declared he had to play in the major leagues someday.
By signing a 12-year contract with the Dodgers, which is supposedly the longest and most guaranteed to a major league pitcher ever, the pitcher who is widely regarded as the best outside of North America achieved one of his ambitions on Wednesday.
Though he may not have many opportunities to experience the Los Angeles postseason atmosphere he took in as a teenager watching Kenta Maeda on the mound at Chavez Ravine in 2017, the 25-year-old ace of Japan’s top league won’t be comfortable without it.
Alongside inspiring any youthful dreamers in the Dodger Stadium bleachers, Yamamoto hopes to uplift Shohei Ohtani and his all-star new club.
Speaking via his interpreter, Yamamoto stated, “I promise to all the fans of LA that going forward, I will focus my everything to become a better player, and to become a world champion as a member of the Dodgers.” “I will endeavor to become the player that others aspire to be, instead of just admiring the players that I have looked up to.”
After choosing to leave the Orix Buffaloes this offseason, Yamamoto decided to become the most dominant pitcher in Japan over the last several seasons, a fact that made him a target for major league teams.
Following the $700 million signing of two-way AL MVP Ohtani and the $136.5 million, five-year contract of right-hander Tyler Glasnow, whom they acquired from Tampa Bay, the big-budget, pitching-poor Dodgers signed Yamamoto to finish their prodigious winter spending spree.
Manager Dave Roberts stated, “This offseason has been monumental for all of us.” The expectations remain the same, even if it is a privilege to be here. Our objective is always to contend for titles, but we have added some talented young players to the lineup.
The 5-foot-10 right-hander Yamamoto, who had a fantastic start to his career in Japan, is expected to be a major league ace by the Dodgers. Several media reports have pegged the deal’s value around $325 million, although the Dodgers never disclosed its exact amount.
Seemingly eager to embark on a new chapter, Yamamoto emerged victorious from three consecutive Nippon Pacific League Most Valuable Player honors. At his first Los Angeles public appearance, Yamamoto grinned confidently and spoke in English to start his news conference.
Upon joining this illustrious franchise, Yamamoto expressed his utter happiness. “The feeling of having Los Angeles as my new home is beyond words.”
In this season, Yamamoto led the Japanese pitching triple crown in wins, strikeouts, and ERA, going 16-6 with a 1.21 ERA, while also striking out 169 and walking just 28. A steady splitter, a potent four-seam fastball, and a wicked curveball are among his six-pitch arsenal. All of these pitches are thrown with remarkable command.
With a 1.72 ERA in his career, he has pitched two no-hitters in the last two years. In his seven seasons in Japan, Yamamoto has allowed just 36 home runs, including two in 164 innings played last season. This is a very impressive feat of power control.
Although Yamamoto acknowledges that the Dodgers were his first choice before the free agency period started, he says that the Yankees and the Mets were among the teams that took his pursuit this month. Though only because Los Angeles’ acquisition of Ohtani improved this perennial challenger, he claimed it influenced his choice.
The most significant factor, in Yamamoto’s opinion, was their success as a successful team.
Along with their personal relationships with Roberts and the team’s current core of players (Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, Bobby Miller, and Ohtani), the Dodgers used all of their vast resources and aspirations to attract Yamamoto.
Yamamoto remarked, “It really resonated as well—I could feel that clubhouse atmosphere even within the meeting.”
One of the most reliable winners in recent major league history will have three new players joining Los Angeles. Thirteen consecutive winning seasons, eleven straight postseason trips, five straight major league seasons with at least 100 games won, three NL pennants, and the 2020 World Series championship have all been achieved by Los Angeles.
However, following a dreadful run of injuries and disappointments this season, the Dodgers desperately needed pitching for a team that managed to win 100 games despite Betts and Freeman’s heroics.
Damage-plagued For the Dodgers, who were eventually defeated by Arizona in the National League Division Series, Clayton Kershaw was the only starting pitcher to pitch more than 125 innings or record a qualifying ERA below 3.75.
In addition to owing Los Angeles a posting fee of almost $50 million for signing Yamamoto, the Dodgers have awarded contracts worth a combined total of potentially over $1.1 billion to Ohtani, Yamamoto, and Glasnow. The team, which is already among the richest in the majors thanks to a local broadcast deal and abundant gate revenue from the best attendance in MLB in every full season since 2012, will still be able to pay for the accords because the two Japanese stars bring in a sizable amount of money abroad.
According to Joel Wolfe, Yamamoto’s agent, who pointed out that
Yamamoto’s sister teaches English, Yamamoto’s English has improved even during his brief stay in the United States this month. During this journey with his two new stars, Roberts, who was born in Japan, hopes to get better at communicating.
“I hope we can meet somewhere in the middle. Yamamoto is going to test me on my Japanese, and I’m going to test him on my English,” Roberts grinned.
