The word out of Los Angeles Dodgers spring training camp is that Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the man who broke the record for largest contract ever given to a pitcher at $325 million, looks “nasty.”
It’s easy to see why all contenders showed varying degrees of interest in the Japanese right-hander: he has smooth mechanics and easy velocity, he offers impeccable command, and his secondary offerings are incredible.
MLB’s official Twitter account posted a video of Yamamoto throwing some heat this week, as Dodgers camp opened.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto is bringing the heat to #SpringTraining 🔥 pic.twitter.com/rpfIShnx1q
— MLB (@MLB) February 14, 2024
Yamamoto will be part of the embarrassment of riches that is the Dodgers rotation.
Between healthy and injured pitchers, LA has Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Walker Buehler, Bobby Miller, James Paxton, Tony Gonsolin, Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May, Michael Grove, Gavin Stone, Emmet Sheehan, and more.
Yamamoto is a three-time Pacific League MVP in Japan, and won the Eiji Sawamura award in the last three seasons, too.
He was also part of the roster that won the third World Baseball Classic title for Japan last spring.
He boasts a mid-90s fastball with run and ride, one that he can dial it up to the high-90s if needed.
His best secondaries are a nasty splitter and a beautiful curveball, and he also throws a cutter.
He pounds the strike zone and rarely walks people or allows home runs.
For him, it’s a matter of translating to MLB what he has been done in NPB for seven years.
He is considered one of the most dominant pitchers in the league, and he is yet to throw a pitch.
He is that special.
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MLB Shows Off Shohei Ohtani In His New Uniform
