‘Nasty’: Word of Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s stuff quickly spreading through Dodgers camp
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Alden Gonzalez, ESPN Staff Writer
GLENDALE, Ariz. — It took only one bullpen session for Yoshinobu Yamamoto to capture the imagination of his new team. It impressed Gavin Lux, who settled into the batter’s box to track pitches when Yamamoto first got off the mound from the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ spring training complex on Friday afternoon. It impressed fellow starting pitcher Tyler Glasnow, who stood nearby. And it impressed those who weren’t even there to watch it.
“I heard it was nasty,” one coach said. “I heard he was just dotting everywhere.”
Yamamoto obtained the largest contract ever given to a starting pitcher this offseason, a 12-year, $325 million deal that came on the heels of three consecutive MVP awards in Japan. Any concerns about transitioning from Nippon Professional Baseball to the major leagues were upstaged by the alluring traits that made Yamamoto the most coveted arm in this year’s free agent market: That he’s only 25, that he’s extremely dedicated, that his repertoire is devastating, and that his command — the way he “dots” the corners of the strike zone — is so advanced.
His new teammates have already been drawn to his distinct workout regimen, focused on flexibility and devoid of traditional weights. Some of them have also joked about learning to throw his javelin. But it’s Yamamoto’s upper-90s four-seam fastball — thrown with lots of backspin and very little downward action, providing the illusion that it is continually rising as it crosses home plate — and devastating splitter that have turned heads at Dodgers camp. That he unleashes such hellacious pitches at 5-foot-10 and 176 pounds, while delivering them with what amounts to a slide step, has only added to the fascination.
“I’ve seen people like that,” said Glasnow, who’s listed at 6-8, 225 pounds. “I just think he’s really wiry and really strong. I don’t know if size necessarily matters. I think he can just collect himself very efficiently and there’s no wasted movements in his mechanics. With a leg kick or not, I think about the way he distributes his weight and I don’t know if he necessarily needs a leg kick. He just moves so well. You can just tell he’s so athletic, so I’m not surprised at all. I think once I saw him throw I was like, ‘Duh he throws a hundred.’ He’s just so explosive.”
Only three pitchers listed at 5-10 or shorter — Whitey Ford, Steve Stone and Mike Marshall — have ever won a Cy Young Award. But Pedro Martinez, Bartolo Colon and Tim Lincecum combined for six Cy Youngs from 1997 to 2009 at 5-11. And Lincecum has been volunteered as a reasonable comp for Yamamoto by several Dodgers coaches and players largely because of the way they both generate momentum with their lower half.
“It comes out of his hand really good; he spins it great,” fellow starting pitcher Walker Buehler said of Yamamoto. “I’m just kind of curious to get my eyes on the whole picture of it.”
More than 70 photographers, videographers and fans lined up along a rope to watch Yamamoto merely play catch with Buehler on Friday. Two days later, Shohei Ohtani stood behind Yamamoto, his locker neighbor in spring training, as he navigated through his second bullpen session.
The Dodgers hope to line Yamamoto up to start at some point during their two-game opening series in South Korea on March 20 and 21, but it’s too early for their rotation plans to be solidified.
Yamamoto said he has noticed “more flexibility” through his first spring training in the United States, as opposed to the tighter schedules he experienced while training with the Orix Buffaloes in Japan. He began getting acclimated to the smaller, slicker major league baseball during the World Baseball Classic last March and trained with it this offseason. As spring training progresses, he’ll prepare himself to start slightly more often than once a week.
“I don’t have the experience throwing on shorter rest,” Yamamoto said through an interpreter. “But I did everything I could do in preparation — adjusting mechanics and a lot of different other things.”
The Dodgers won’t abide by a strict six-man rotation this season, largely because they don’t want to restrict themselves to a seven-man bullpen. But they seem determined to use the off days in their schedule and the depth in their minor league system to consistently give Yamamoto at least five days off — as opposed to the traditional four — in between starts. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the starting rotation is “going to be fluid.”
A lot of it will hinge on how Yamamoto adapts.
“There’s life assimilation,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. “There’s assimilation at the park, between starts. There’s figuring out the right rest and how to adapt more to a major league schedule that we can’t know the answer to right now. We have to be around him, watch how he’s recovering and do it in the most thoughtful way we can because obviously he’s going to be a big part of what we do in 2024 and he’s going to be a big part of what we do for a lot of years. We’re viewing this year as one to get him acclimated and figure it out. We don’t know exactly what that means yet. But we’re going to be partners with him in figuring it out.”
Yamamoto’s numbers in Japan were almost incomprehensible, the last three seasons specifically. He posted a 1.42 ERA in 557 2/3 innings from 2021 to 2023, accumulating 587 strikeouts and 110 walks. He faced 659 batters this past season and only two of them hit home runs. Dodgers vice president of player personnel Galen Carr and the team’s international scouts had spent years raving about Yamamoto to the Dodgers’ decision-makers. Friedman took two trips to Japan to see him in person in 2023.
“It’s easy to appreciate what he has accomplished,” Friedman said, “but it takes it up a whole other level when you watch the way he competes, when you see his routine and just what a freak athlete he is.”
The 2025 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby is fast approaching — and the field is set.
Braves hometown hero Ronald Acuna Jr. became the first player to commit to the event, which will be held at Truist Park in Atlanta on July 14 (8 p.m. ET on ESPN). He was followed by MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals, Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins, Oneil Cruz of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays, Brent Rooker of the Athletics and Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the New York Yankees.
On Friday, however, Acuna was replaced by teammate Matt Olson.
With all the entrants announced, let’s break down their chances at taking home this year’s Derby prize.
Full All-Star Game coverage: How to watch, schedule, rosters, more
2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 434 feet
Why he could win: Olson is a late replacement for Acuna as the home team’s representative at this year’s Derby. Apart from being the Braves’ first baseman, however, Olson also was born in Atlanta and grew up a Braves fan, giving him some extra motivation. The left-handed slugger led the majors in home runs in 2023 — his 54 round-trippers that season also set a franchise record — and he remains among the best in the game when it comes to exit velo and hard-hit rate.
Why he might not: The home-field advantage can also be a detriment if a player gets too hyped up in the first round. See Julio Rodriguez in Seattle in 2023, when he had a monster first round, with 41 home runs, but then tired out in the second round.
2025 home runs: 36 | Longest: 440 feet
Why he could win: It’s the season of Cal! The Mariners’ catcher is having one of the greatest slugging first halves in MLB history, as he’s been crushing mistakes all season . His easy raw power might be tailor-made for the Derby — he ranks in the 87th percentile in average exit velocity and delivers the ball, on average, at the optimal home run launch angle of 23 degrees. His calm demeanor might also be perfect for the contest as he won’t get too amped up.
Why he might not: He’s a catcher — and one who has carried a heavy workload, playing in all but one game this season. This contest is as much about stamina as anything, and whether Raleigh can carry his power through three rounds would be a concern. No catcher has ever won the Derby, with only Ivan Rodriguez back in 2005 even reaching the finals.
2025 home runs: 24 | Longest: 451 feet
Why he could win: He’s big, he’s strong, he’s young, he’s awesome, he might or might not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. This is the perfect opportunity for Wood to show his talent on the national stage, and he wouldn’t be the first young player to star in the Derby. He ranks in the 97th percentile in average exit velocity and 99th percentile in hard-hit rate, so he can still muscle the ball out in BP even if he slightly mishits it. His long arms might be viewed as a detriment, but remember the similarly tall Aaron Judge won in 2017.
Why he might not: His natural swing isn’t a pure uppercut — he has a pretty low average launch angle of just 6.2 degrees — so we’ll see how that plays in a rapid-fire session. In real games, his power is primarily to the opposite field, but in a Home Run Derby you can get more cheapies pulling the ball down the line.
2025 home runs: 20 | Longest: 479 feet
Why he could win: Buxton’s raw power remains as impressive as nearly any hitter in the game. He crushed a 479-foot home run earlier this season and has four others of at least 425 feet. Indeed, his “no doubter” percentage — home runs that would be out of all 30 parks based on distance — is 75%, the highest in the majors among players with more than a dozen home runs. His bat speed ranks in the 89th percentile. In other words, two tools that could translate to a BP lightning show.
Why he might not: Buxton is 31 and the Home Run Derby feels a little more like a younger man’s competition. Teoscar Hernandez did win last year at age 31, but before that, the last winner older than 29 was David Ortiz in 2010, and that was under much different rules than are used now.
2025 home runs: 16 | Longest: 463 feet
Why he could win: If you drew up a short list of players everyone wants to see in the Home Run Derby, Cruz would be near the top. He has the hardest-hit ball of the 2025 season, and the hardest ever tracked by Statcast, a 432-foot missile of a home run with an exit velocity of 122.9 mph. He also crushed a 463-foot home run in Anaheim that soared way beyond the trees in center field. With his elite bat speed — 100th percentile — Cruz has the ability to awe the crowd with a potentially all-time performance.
Why he might not: Like all first-time contestants, can he stay within himself and not get too caught up in the moment? He has a long swing, which will result in some huge blasts, but might not be the most efficient for a contest like this one, where the more swings a hitter can get in before the clock expires, the better.
2025 home runs: 23 | Longest: 425 feet
Why he could win: Although Caminero was one of the most hyped prospects entering 2024, everyone kind of forgot about him heading into this season since he didn’t immediately rip apart the majors as a rookie. In his first full season, however, he has showed off his big-time raw power — giving him a chance to become just the third player to reach 40 home runs in his age-21 season. He has perhaps the quickest bat in the majors, ranking in the 100th percentile in bat speed, and his top exit velocity ranks in the top 15. That could translate to a barrage of home runs.
Why he might not: In game action, Caminero does hit the ball on the ground quite often — in fact, he’s on pace to break Jim Rice’s record for double plays grounded into in a season. If he gets out of rhythm, that could lead to a lot of low line drives during the Derby instead of fly balls that clear the fences.
2025 home runs: 19 | Longest: 440 feet
Why he could win: The Athletics slugger has been one of the top power hitters in the majors for three seasons now and is on his way to a third straight 30-homer season. Rooker has plus bat speed and raw power, but his biggest strength is an optimal average launch angle (19 degrees in 2024, 15 degrees this season) that translates to home runs in game action. That natural swing could be picture perfect for the Home Run Derby. He also wasn’t shy about saying he wanted to participate — and maybe that bodes well for his chances.
Why he might not: Rooker might not have quite the same raw power as some of the other competitors, as he has just one home run longer than 425 feet in 2025. But that’s a little nitpicky, as 11 of his home runs have still gone 400-plus feet. He competed in the college home run derby in Omaha while at Mississippi State in 2016 and finished fourth.
2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 442 feet
Why he could win: Chisholm might not be the most obvious name to participate, given his career high of 24 home runs, but he has belted 17 already in 2025 in his first 61 games after missing some time with an injury. He ranks among the MLB leaders in a couple of home run-related categories, ranking in the 96th percentile in expected slugging percentage and 98th percentile in barrel rate. His raw power might not match that of the other participants, but he’s a dead-pull hitter who has increased his launch angle this season, which might translate well to the Derby, even if he won’t be the guy hitting the longest home runs.
Why he might not: Most of the guys who have won this have been big, powerful sluggers. Chisholm is listed at 5-foot-11, 184 pounds, and you have to go back to Miguel Tejada in 2004 to find the last player under 6 foot to win.
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