MLB World Reacts to Disastrous Debut by Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto was one of the most prized acquisitions of the offseason across all of Major League Baseball.
A number of teams lined up for the services of the 25-year-old righty, who logged a 1.82 ERA in seven seasons in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball league. Ultimately, the Dodgers added Yamamoto on a 12-year, $325 million contract to add firepower to the top of the rotation.
But Yamamoto’s first major league start could not have gone much worse Thursday in Seoul, South Korea. He lasted just one inning, allowing five earned runs on four hits, while walking one and striking out two. The Dodgers found themselves in a 5–0 hole against the San Diego Padres at that point, and he was pulled from the game after 43 pitches.
The avalanche started when Yamamoto gave up a two-run triple to Jake Cronenworth. Then Padres designated hitter Manny Machado drew a walk, and shortstop Ha-Seong Kim subsequently hit a sacrifice fly to make it 3–0 Padres.
Yamamoto struck out Jurickson Profar but then gave up an RBI double to Luis Campusano. Third baseman Tyler Wade then came to the plate and hit an RBI single to score San Diego’s fifth run of the inning. Yamamoto finally stopped the bleeding with a strikeout of rookie outfielder Jackson Merrill.
Baseball fans and pundits across social media reacted to the disastrous MLB debut by Yamamoto. Here are some of the best posts:
