The Los Angeles Dodgers’ pitching staff has battled injuries and ineffectiveness this season. But while the rotation is rounding into form in time for a playoff run, Yoshinobu Yamamoto has remained a constant for LA. The Dodgers’ ace is the team’s first pitcher to reach 200 strikeouts since 2021. He hit strikeout No. 201 in his final start of the regular season Thursday.
Yamamoto impressed in a remarkable sophomore campaign. He became just the second MLB pitcher since 1913 to record 200 strikeouts with an ERA under 2.50, an opponent batting average under .200 and a sub-1.00 WHIP while allowing less than 35 extra-base hits, per OptaSTATS.
The only other pitcher to accomplish the incredibly rare feat was Bob Gibson in 1968.
Yamamoto secured the historic achievement while helping Los Angeles win the NL West. The Dodgers clinched the division with an 8-0 victory in the series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks Thursday. The team won its fourth-straight division title and its 12th in the last 13 seasons.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto makes history in second MLB season
Yamamoto dominated the Diamondbacks, allowing four hits and two walks while striking out seven batters in six scoreless innings. It’s the 27-year-old All-Star’s second-straight scoreless start. And it continued his run of excellence in September.
The Dodgers’ hurler has been exceptional in four starts this month. Yamamoto has a 0.67 ERA, 0.667 WHIP and 34 strikeouts in 27 innings pitched since September 6. He threw one-hitters in three of his four outings this month.
On the season, Yamamoto went 12-8 with a 2.49 ERA, 0.990 WHIP, 167 ERA+, 4.9 bWAR and 201 Ks in 173.2 innings.
Yamamoto lost a no-hit bid with two outs in the ninth inning of his September 6 start against the Baltimore Orioles. While disappointing, that outing began a historic run of dominance for the Dodgers’ rotation.
As the team’s starting staff takes shape for the postseason, LA’s bullpen remains something of a mystery. Tanner Scott blew his 10th save of the season in the series opener against Arizona. Manager Dave Roberts sent Scott out to relieve Yamamoto on Thursday as the closer was forced to work the seventh inning of an 8-0 game.
Roki Sasaki came out of the bullpen in his return from a lengthy injury absence. And Clayton Kershaw got some relief work in as well as the Dodgers figure out their pitching staff before attempting to repeat as World Series champs.
