Most of MLB is still in Spring Training, but the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are already in game two of the MLB World Tour: Seoul Series. In a perfect world, Shohei Ohtani would have been the Dodgers’ opening day starter. But his absence just gave us an earlier look at Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
The Japanese sensation, who signed a 12-year, $325 million contract with the Dodgers, finally got a chance to make his official regular-season debut on Thursday, but he got off to a very rough start.
Yamamoto’s first opponent got a single; then he hit Fernando Tatis Jr. with a pitch before allowing a two-RBI triple to Jake Cronenworth.
The Padres jump on Yoshinobu Yamamoto early 😮
— ESPN (@espn) March 21, 2024
Jake Cronenworth delivers with a 2-RBI triple 😳 pic.twitter.com/XDftopWRoi
The next batter walked, setting up Seoul native Ha-Seong Kim for a sacrifice fly to drive in another run. Yamamoto then had a wild pitch, advancing Kim to second base. Finally, Yamamoto got his first strikeout, overpowering Jurickson Profar.
But Yamamoto’s struggles weren’t over yet.
He then allowed an RBI double and an RBI single before getting his second strikeout once he reached the No. 9 hitter in the Padres’ lineup. Still, the damage was done, with the Dodgers already trailing 5-0 before they even stepped to the plate.
Yamamoto’s day was done after 43 pitches, 23 of which were strikes.
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s debut stat line: 1 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 45.00 ERA
The bright side is that Yamamoto’s next start couldn’t go much worse, and being that he was pulled after just 43 pitches, he should have plenty of time to rest before getting back on the mound.
Related: 2024 MLB power rankings: Evaluating all 30 teams entering MLB spring training