Christmas came early for the MLB hot stove and its frozen free-agent market, as Japanese star pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto has finally made a decision.
But the decision was perhaps the most predictable one possible, really, as the 25-year-old Yamamoto has decided to take his talents to Los Angeles by way of a 12-year, $325 million contract with the Dodgers.
YOKOHAMA, JAPAN – JULY 31: Yoshinobu Yamamoto #17 of Team Japan looks on before the game against Team Mexico during the baseball opening round Group A game of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. (Koji Watanabe/Getty Images)
Considered by many to be the best Japanese pitcher to ever make the move to the MLB, Yamamoto is coming over to the top league in the world after a Japanese career that included a 75-30 record, 1.72 ERA, and 986 strikeouts in 967.2 innings from 2017 through 2023.
This past season, Yamamato won 16 of his 22 decisions in 23 starts for the Orix Buffaloes, and posted a 1.21 ERA and 0.884 WHIP. Yamamato also struck out 169 hitters with just 28 walks in 164 innings, and in September, he threw his second career no-hitter. For that performance, Yamamoto won his third consecutive Pacific League MVP, third consecutive Sawamura Award (the Japanese Cy Young Award), and was named to his fifth NBP All-Star Game.
Dec 14, 2023; Los Angeles, CA, USA; From left Brandon Gomes, Dave Roberts, Mark Walter, Shohei Ohtani, Stan Kasten and Andrew Friedman pose for a photo at Ohtani’s introductory press conference. (Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports)
Yamamoto’s move to the Dodgers is just the first example of the Dodger reaping the rewards of both adding Shohei Ohtani and adding Ohtani on a $700 million contract full of down-the-road deferrals that allow the Dodgers to continue to load up their team with all-world talents in the now.
Between Ohtani, Yamamoto, and the move to acquire-and-extend starting pitcher Tyler Glasnow to a $136.5 million contract, the Dodgers’ ownership group has made a combined $1.161 billion in total financial commitments on just three players.
Oh, and the Dodgers still have superstars Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts, too.
YOKOHAMA, JAPAN – AUGUST 04: Yoshinobu Yamamoto #17 of Team Japan looks on before the game against Team Republic of Korea during the semifinals of men’s baseball on day twelve of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Yokohama Baseball Stadium on August 04, 2021 in Yokohama, Japan. (Koji Watanabe/Getty Images)
With Yamamoto officially off the market, it will be interesting to see just how fast and furious the secondary names on the market begin to fly off the shelves ahead of Christmas.
Craig Breslow and the Red Sox are expected to remain in the hunt for many of those names, from former Rays and Padres ace Blake Snell to 2023 World Series champion Jordan Montgomery and beyond.
