The Los Angeles Dodgers officially announced the signing of Yoshinobu Yamamoto to a 12-year, $325 million contract Wednesday. Yamamoto's press conference is scheduled for 3:00 PM PST on Wednesday. In similar fashion to Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers posted a video on X (formerly Twitter) to welcome Yamamoto to Los Angeles.

Yamamoto was arguably the best free-agent pitcher available this offseason. Los Angeles' biggest splash was their Ohtani signing, and they followed that up by trading for Tyler Glasnow and Manuel Margot from the Tampa Bay Rays.

Some people around the MLB world wondered how aggressive LA would be after acquiring Ohtani and Glasnow. The Dodgers proved they are all-in by signing Yamamoto to such a lucrative contract as well.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto officially joining Dodgers

Yoshinobu Yamamoto in a Dodgers uniform.

The Dodgers and Yamamoto previously agreed to a contract. However, as we learned from Carlos Correa's free agency journey an offseason ago, anything can happen until a contract is made official.

It took a while for everything to come together, but now Yamamoto is indeed set to join the Dodgers.

In order to make room on the roster, Los Angeles designated LHP Bryan Hudson for assignment. Yamamoto will join a Dodgers starting rotation that also includes Tyler Glasnow, Walker Buehler, and Bobby Miller. Unless LA adds more starting pitching, which is certainly a possibility, Emmet Sheehan will likely be the team's No. 5 starter.

Of course, Shohei Ohtani is expected to join the rotation in 2025 after being limited in 2024 due to an injury. LA's pitching was a huge question mark following the '23 campaign and now they appear to have one of the better rotations in the sport.

If Yamamoto lives up to his potential, he will not only become the ace of the Dodgers but an NL Cy Young candidate. Signing a pitcher who's never appeared in an MLB game to a $325 million contract is obviously a risk, but LA is confident in his potential.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto, along with Ohtani and Glasnow, will help the team reach new heights during the upcoming 2024 season.