GLENDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 26: Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches in the bullpen during a spring training session at Camelback Ranch on February 26, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Masterpress/Getty Images)
Dodgers star pitching prospect Yoshinobu Yamamoto gave up five runs and exited after one inning in his MLB debut Thursday against the San Diego Padres. The Dodgers went on to lose the game 15-11.
In a strange quirk to the 2024 MLB schedule, Los Angeles and San Diego began their regular seasons a week early to play a pair of games in Seoul, South Korea, this week. Yamamoto did not pitch in the team’s Opening Day game Wednesday, which the Dodgers won 5-2. His delayed debut was not worth waiting for, however.
Yamamoto did at least manage to finish the inning, but he also faced San Diego’s entire lineup and gave up five runs on four hits, a walk and a hit-by-pitch. He did not return for the second inning and the game quickly became a shootout. Los Angeles went through seven pitchers and San Diego went through six, with a Padres three-run rally in the top of the ninth sealing the game for good.
The Dodgers were considered a major sweepstakes winner during the off-season when they signed Yamamoto in a 12-year, $325 million deal. With an entire career ahead of him, it’s impossible to dismiss his potential on the basis of his first start, though those resentful of the Dodgers will certainly try. That being said, it is now clear that the Japanese star will need some time to adjust to MLB-caliber hitting.
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At 1-1 to begin the season, the Dodgers are already behind the pace many are expecting from them after one of the biggest off-seasons in MLB history. The team managed to add Yamamoto and international superstar Shohei Ohtani for more than $1 billion to a team that already features the likes of Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts.
Los Angeles is a prohibitive World Series favorite by necessity, though super teams have not necessarily found postseason success in recent years. In order to reach the heights many have predicted for them, the Dodgers must navigate several early issues, as Yamamoto’s poor outing in South Korea coincided with a gambling scandal surrounding Ohtani.
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