Yoshinobu Yamamoto has arrived. The 25-year-old Japanese phenom threw his first live batting practice session as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday.
It will induce vomiting.
Yamamoto faced Mookie Betts, Jason Heyward, Manuel Margot, Max Muncy, Freddie Freeman and Austin Barnes. To say that they were impressed would be understated.
Betts gave him a standing ovation. Freeman was blown away. He saw a 92mph cutter and a nasty splitter down and away, among other pitches, and fouled off a few line drives.
The 34-year-old veteran shook his head as he walked away from the box.
That’s some crazy stuff. I’m glad he’s on our team.
That’s command like I’ve never seen. Every pitch is intended in a quadrant.
— Freddie Freeman
POV video from behind the plate gives a great look at what it’s like to face Yamamoto. Hitters are going to have a very hard time figuring him out.
And what’s crazy is that Yamamoto said that it wasn’t even his finest stuff.
It was good for me to have the opportunity to face the actual hitters. I think this is not the best yet, and I’m going to keep adjusting with what I need to and it’s going to keep getting better.
— Yoshinobu Yamamoto, through his interpreter
Los Angeles’ newest superstar frequently hits mid-90s with his fastball. He offsets his heater with a curveball, slider, changeup and splitter.
The ability to keep batters guessing, while also being able to blow it past them is going to put MLB lineups in a mental pretzel. It is still early but it seems like every penny of his $325 million contract will be well-spent.
Yamamoto arrives to the Dodgers as the No. 2 starter behind Tyler Glasnow, if not the ace. If his bullpen session was any indication, he is going to be a star.
Stepping into the box against the three-time Nippon Professional Baseball Pacific League MVP and three-time Eiji Sawamura Award winner is going to be a nightmare for hitters. For Freeman and Betts to be as impressed as they were on Saturday is a really good sign. Yamamoto will only continue to improve as he faces more internal and external competition. He is going to draw huge, curious crowds in spring training.