Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s Los Angeles Dodgers debut proved short-lived as he pitched only one inning, conceding five runs to the San Diego Padres on Thursday night.
The 25-year-old right-hander quickly found himself trailing 2-0 after just nine pitches and struggled to find his rhythm, needing 43 pitches to secure three outs before being replaced. This outing left him with a staggering 45.00 ERA.
During his brief stint, Yamamoto faced challenges, allowing four hits, issuing a walk, hitting a batter, and delivering a wild pitch. His command faltered as he managed to throw only 23 of his pitches for strikes, with an average fastball velocity of 95.4 mph. His pitch selection included a mix of fastballs, cutters, curveballs, and splitters.
The Padres capitalized on Yamamoto’s difficulties, with Xander Bogaerts singling on his first pitch and Fernando Tatis Jr. getting hit by a full-count splitter, setting the stage for Jake Cronenworth’s triple to right field, securing an early 2-0 lead.
Following a walk to Manny Machado, pitching coach Mark Prior made a visit to the mound. Despite efforts to stabilize, San Diego continued to press, adding to their lead with a sacrifice fly, wild pitch, and RBI double by Luis Campusano, among other hits.
This marked a challenging start for Yamamoto, whose performance was a far cry from his accolades in the Pacific League where he earned MVP honors twice for the Orix Buffaloes. His signing with the Dodgers in December represented a significant investment, making him the highest-paid pitcher in terms of guaranteed money.
