Yoshinobu Yamamoto Might Pass on Dodgers to Not Be Under Shohei Ohtani’s ‘Shadow’: Report
After landing two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers’ front office has its sights set on addressing starting pitching. They acquired starter Tyler Glasnow from the Tampa Bay Rays to be a headline piece, but there is more work to do.
The Dodgers have their eyes on Japanese pitching sensation Yoshinobu Yamamoto and are willing to shell out big money to land him. He is the biggest remaining prize of the free-agent market, with every big market team in the hunt.
The Dodgers like their chances at landing Yamamoto, but Jon Heyman of The New York Post has reported that one rival executive believes Yamamoto might pass on the Dodgers for a curious reason: he doesn’t want to be in Ohtani’s shadow.
one rival guessed that Yamamoto might prefer a bigger share of the spotlight. “He doesn’t want to be in Ohtani’s shadow,” that rival exec speculated.
Per Jon Heyman of The New York Post
Few know Yamamoto’s intentions, but it could be that he simply wants to make his own mark. Playing alongside Ohtani might give him an easier transition into the United States and — depending on which direction he’s leaning — give him a better chance to win. Creating his own legacy might mean even more to the 25-year-old right-hander.
The Dodgers are already going to be the Japan’s most-watched MLB team by virtue of having Ohtani. Whether that is a selling point or a demerit remains to be seen.
Landing Yamamoto would be a game-changer for the Dodgers. He has ace-level stuff that’s expected to transition well to the United States. He uses a nice mix of pitches to confuse batters while throwing heat.
Reportedly, he grew up a fan of the Dodgers. That might come into play if Yamamoto is weighing similar monetary offers from multiple teams.
For its part, the Dodgers’ front office has pulled out all the stops for Yamamoto, even enlisting Ohtani’s help recruiting him. Ultimately the choice rests with Yamamoto to decide where he will feel the most comfortable.
Photo Credit: Yukihito Taguchi-USA TODAY Sports
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How about this? Yamamoto doesn’t need to worry about Ohtani’s shadow because Shohei doesn’t like talking to the media. There you go Heyman; we’re all MLB insiders/speculators now, aren’t we?
I always thought baseball was a TEAM sport.
It’s interesting that rivals to the Dodgers are saying he wants to be his own star on a team. Japanese players preach that its always about the team rather a player’s singular accomplishments…
“Shadow?”
Possible, but he may face never winning a pennant or WS.
The Dodgers are looking at 10-year dynasty!
Winning the pennant is one thing but even with all the money the Dodgers have paid over the last decade they’ve only won one Championship and that was a short season to boot. Baseball is still a team sport
That’s a rival trying to get him riled up , this fellow probably pitches slightly better so not sure he would be in the shadows, winning WS has to be one of the boxes checked on his list, I don’t blame a rival for trying and stir the pot because his and many teams are worried that dodgers might land this guy
Even if there was some remote truth to him not wanting to be a shadow on the field, he’s going to want to gladly share the spotlight when it comes to that Japan endorsement money. Japanese companies will be handing over their wallets for Ohtani but would surrender their entire bank accounts for an Ohtani/Yamamoto package. He will win more games and make a ton of more money playing with the Dodgers
What happened to all the good will talk he was giving earlier in the year when he said that he would love to play with other Japanese Players…he thought it would be special. So was that all a lie to hide the fact that he was just waiting to spring the “I’m just another international money grubber trying to get mine? Sounds like it. Well, if he chooses New York and bombs out t first, I hope he can take the heat because Bronx or Queens will be mercessless no matter what his hype has been…