Yoshinobu Yamamoto Highlights: New Dodgers Star Shines in Cactus League Debut

The highly-anticipated Cactus League debut for Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto began with a 95 mph fastball and ended with a disgusting splitter.

He threw 19 pitches with 16 for strikes.

Yamamoto, who has received rave reviews from his teammates after live batting practice sessions, only gave up one hit in his two innings of work on Wednesday against the Texas Rangers.

He opened the bottom of the first inning with a strikeout of Marcus Semien that was Shohei Ohtani-approved. Ohtani made the trip to Surprise Stadium to watch his teammate make his MLB debut.

He faced the minimum and finished with three strikeouts which included an electric three-pitch sequence against Nathaniel Lowe which resulted in a strikeout.

The lone hit was off the bat of Evan Carter.

Yamamoto lived up to the early hype in his Cactus League debut. He’s a “safe bet” to pitch in one of the two games in Korea for the Dodgers, according to Dave Roberts.

Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports