Cody Snavely
The Dodgers’ crazy offseason spending continues as the team has reportedly signed 25-year-old star Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto to a 12-year $325 million deal.
The deal will also include two opt-outs after years six and eight of the contract. The agreement also came with a $50 million signing bonus, lowering the AAV to potentially $22.9 million. The Dodgers, however, will have to pay the Orix Buffaloes another $50 million for the posting fee.
Dodgers get the pitching they need now & the future
It is no secret that the Dodgers’ most prominent need for the 2024 season and beyond was starting pitching. If you have been following the team, you’ll understand that the injuries to Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin, and Clayton Kershaw have left a massive hole in the starting rotation.
Enter Yoshinobu Yamamoto, a 25-year-old RHP from Japan who dominated the NPB last season, going 16-6 with a 1.21 ERA and 169 SO in 164 IP. When Yamamoto was first posted, the consensus around the league was that he would get around $200 million. However, the number continued to grow exponentially, especially when the bidding teams were all big market spenders in the Dodgers, Yankees, and Mets. Due to Yamamoto’s age and career dominance in the NPB, most teams were okay with giving him close to $300 million over ten years, and the Dodgers contract blows that number out of the water.
The signing corrects an immediate need for a dominant arm in the Dodgers rotation and allows LHP Ryan Yarbrough to move to the bullpen in a hybrid role he played last year. However, with Walker Buehler set to be a free agent at year’s end, the Yamamoto signing is excellent insurance to replace the arm. The Dodgers potential rotation for 2024 could look something like this:
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto
- Tyler Glasnow
- Walker Buehler
- Bobby Miller
- Emmet Sheehan
As more details are posted about the contract, follow the Bleed Los Podcast and DodgersBeat for all the latest Dodgers news.
