LOS ANGELES — Yoshinobu Yamamoto has been looking for something.
Since his return to the Dodgers on Sept. 10 after a stint on the injured list due to a right rotator cuff strain, it has been a mixed bag. The right-hander has had a few good starts, a few bad starts and a few starts in between. When October began, the team retained hope that he’d round into form as the postseason rolled on.
Going into Game 2 of the World Series, the question for the Dodgers was which version of Yamamoto would they get?
When he handed the ball to manager Dave Roberts on Saturday night, walking off the mound in the seventh inning to a roaring standing ovation from the 52,725 fans at Dodger Stadium, he had answered that question.
The best version.
“Yamamoto, he was made for those moments,” said Teoscar Hernández, who homered in the Dodgers’ 4-2 victory in Game 2. “He was doing it in Japan before he got here, and as soon as he got here, he was doing it here.”
Saturday was Yamamoto’s first time pitching in the World Series, but against the Yankees, who were finalists to sign him last winter, he looked like a seasoned vet. For a guy who has been viewed as an ace since he was 18 and has pitched on the world stage for Team Japan, looking poised in big moments might be in his DNA.
“It was a mixed feeling coming into the game,” Yamamoto said afterward. “Because I was really looking forward to it and happy. After I felt that, I started trying to focus.”
The Yankees battled the Dodgers’ rookie in the first inning, grinding at-bats and making him throw additional pitches. After he tossed 21 in the first frame, it appeared to be setting up as a short night for Yamamoto.
But what separated his Game 2 outing from other starts he has made since his return from injury was the way he settled into a rhythm. For the first time in October, Yamamoto worked efficiently and got quick outs.
“I gave up a home run [to Juan Soto] and allowed them to tie the game,” Yamamoto said, referring to the only hit he surrendered. “[But] I got run support, and I was able to keep them to zero after that inning.”
In his previous start against the Mets in NLCS Game 4, Yamamoto had his strikeout stuff working, punching out eight in the game. But he wasn’t efficient and made it through just 4 1/3 innings.
Against the Yankees, he was able to put it all together and, following the third-inning solo homer to Soto, lock in. From that moment on, Yamamoto set the Yankees down without much of a fight. He retired the last 11 batters he faced, and after that 21-pitch first, he tossed 64 pitches over his final 5 1/3 innings.
The Japanese star finished the game having thrown 6 1/3 innings and allowed one run on one hit, with two walks and four strikeouts. It was the first time he had pitched into the seventh inning since he faced — coincidentally enough — the Yankees in June.
“Watching how he was throwing the baseball, there wasn’t much stress in the game,” Roberts said. “He hasn’t been in the seventh inning since that Yankee game. [But] I felt — I think he’s thrown up to 76 pitches, so I felt building — we had a good building-block foundation.”
Yamamoto’s ability to stretch into the seventh inning bodes well for him and the bullpen going forward, but perhaps more importantly, he looks as confident and as healthy as he has all season.
“By the time I came off the IL, I was pretty much close to where I was before,” Yamamoto said. “After that, after I started pitching in games, I think I got better.”
Added Hernández: “Earlier today, I told him it’s going to be a good night for him.”
When the Dodgers signed Yamamoto to a record 12-year, $325 million deal this past offseason, they weren’t signing an unknown commodity. They were signing a player who, since his teens, has been one of the best starting pitchers in the world. When the season began, the Dodgers and the rest of MLB saw that.
And while it took Yamamoto some time to rediscover that form after his injury, when the Dodgers have needed him most, he has shown up and delivered his best.
“The team gave this kid that much money, not because … this is not the draft. It’s not like he projects that he’s going to be great — he is great,” Kiké Hernández said during the NLDS. “… that’s who he is. And we’re not surprised whatsoever.”
“When he goes out and executes, it’s really good stuff,” catcher Will Smith said.
The Dodgers now hold a commanding 2-0 lead in the World Series going into their first game in the Bronx on Monday. One of the early trends for L.A. has been its starting pitching showing up in a big way. Jack Flaherty and Yamamoto have combined to toss 11 2/3 innings in the team’s two victories while allowing just three runs on two homers. Not having to go deep into the bullpen early could soon pay huge dividends.
With no off-days between Games 3, 4 and a potential 5 in New York and a bullpen game still ahead for the Dodgers, having a rested relief corps looms as a huge advantage as they try to keep the Yankees’ backs against the wall.
