The Los Angeles Dodgers completed their slate of Cactus League games on Wednesday, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto also wrapping up his first Spring Training experience in Major League Baseball.
Yamamoto struck out seven in his 4.2 innings of work against the Seattle Mariners. He got off to an impressive start by striking out the side in the first inning. Yamamoto threw a total of 72 pitches, landing 46 for strikes, and again displayed his deep arsenal of pitches.
Although there were some mixed results after an impressive Dodgers Spring Training debut, the 25-year-old voiced an appreciation of the experience that came his first camp, via SportsNet LA:
“I was given all the support I needed, and that support let me focus on what I wanted to do. Also, it was good to watch other players in their work. That kind of gave me good motivation.”
In three Cactus League starts, Yamamoto carried an 8.38 ERA, 1.97 WHIP and tallied 14 strikeouts.
He’s pegged as the Dodgers’ No. 2 starter when they take on the San Diego Padres in the Seoul Series in South Korea, which also comes with an extra plan in Yamamoto’s build up and adjustment to an MLB schedule.
At different points in spring, Yamamoto has also revealed that his outings have been a lot of him trying different things, not necessarily pitching for perfection. Yamamoto’s feel for working out of the stretch is an area he’s emphasized is a work in progress, but has noted an overall solid takeaway following each Cactus League start.
Any concern with Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s Spring Training stats?
As always, performance in Spring Training is relative to the player. For pitchers, process and sequencing are more important than actual stats.
Yamamoto is getting used to a new baseball, while working with catchers, pitching coaches and lineups for the first time. His stuff has looked phenomenal in spurts, but the usual hiccups surfaced, resulting in an inflated ERA caused by subpar defense at times.
Yamamoto’s rebound and look ahead into the regular season should be viewed similar to New York Mets right-hander Kodai Senga, who posted a 3.44 ERA from Opening Day through the end of May. While going on to lower that mark to a 2.75 ERA, establishing himself as a feared starter in the National League.
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