The Los Angeles Dodgers have been one of the hottest teams in baseball since the All-Star break. The Dodgers are top four in the latest MLB power rankings and the team has managed to hold onto first place in what’s becoming a tight race for the NL West crown.
The Dodgers would certainly benefit from the return of Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The 25-year-old first-year starter could be back on the mound for LA soon. Yamamoto threw a bullpen session of around 40 pitches today, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said per The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya. The pitcher will face hitters on Friday when he meets the team in St. Louis, per Ardaya.
Yamamoto has been on the shelf since he was forced to leave the game on June 15 with a strained right rotator cuff. He was placed on the injured list on June 16 and moved to the 60-day IL on July 13.
The Dodgers hope to have Yoshinobu Yamamoto back from the IL soon
The former Nippon Professional Baseball star was able to begin a throwing program and has had several bullpen sessions in the last week. The next step is to face live hitters and work his way up to a simulated game. After that Yamamoto could go out on a rehab assignment. If all goes well, he could return to LA later this month or in early September.
The Dodgers signed Yamamoto to a 12-year, $325 million contract prior to the 2024 season. Los Angeles paid an additional $50.625 million posting fee for Yamamoto’s services.
The rookie righty had pitched very well for the Dodgers before his injury. In 14 starts he went 6-2 with a 2.92 ERA, 1.068 WHIP, an ERA+ of 137 and 84 strikeouts in 74 innings. Yamamoto was up to 1.7 WAR by mid June.
The Dodgers hope he’ll be back in time to get up to speed before the start of the postseason. Los Angeles is 21 games above .500 and the team has a 3.5-game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks and the San Diego Padres in the NL West entering play on Tuesday.
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