Dodgers: Andrew Friedman Traveled to Watch Yoshinobu Yamamoto, A Top Pitcher in Japan
While the Dodgers are gearing up for the 2023 season and dusting off some rust during Spring Training, Andrew Friedman is scouting for potential future players.
One of those being Yoshinobu Yamamoto, one of the best pitchers in Japan. Earlier this month, Andrew Friedman paid Yamamoto a trip before making it back to team camp in Glendale last week.
The 24-year-old right-handed pitcher has played the past six seasons for the Orix Buffaloes for the Nippon Professional baseball League out in Japan.
Across his career, he posts an impressive 1.95 ERA with a 54-23 overall record. Between his last two seasons, he’s collected 405 strikeouts across 386.2 innings of work.
Imagine the damage he would do for the Dodgers…
This March, Yamamoto will join MLB All-Star pitchers Yu Darvish and Shohei Ohtani in representing Team Japan in the World Baseball Classic. Darvish played in Los Angeles for half of the 2017 season and Ohtani could be sporting the Dodger Blue next season so maybe they have a thing or two to tell Yamamoto about coming overseas to play for Friedman and co.
For now, the Dodgers will stick with Kershaw, Urias, Gonsolin, Syndergaard, and Dustin May, this upcoming season while Michael Grove, Bobby Miller, and Ryan Pepiot will look to get a few starts. But next year will be up in the air.
Could this be Kershaw’s last year with the Dodgers or in the MLB at all? Where will Urias go as he’ll head into free agency next winter? Lots of questions for the future of the Dodgers’ pitching staff and maybe Yamamoto is not so bad of an option after all.
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