The Los Angeles Dodgers are winning the free agency right now after signing Shohei Ohtani, the undisputed no.1 free agent, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, regarded as the second-best available player in the market.
The 2023 National League West champions signed both players within this month and it was reported that Ohtani was among those who helped his fellow Japanese sign with his current team.
Dodgers are looking like the best team on paper with their free-agency movements. Aside from Ohtani and Yamamoto, All-Stars Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman are currently signed with the club. They also signed Tyler Glasnow this month while Miguel Rojas, Joe Kelly, and Dustin May are locked in.
Many believe that Dodgers have no need for Yamamoto but they could be wrong. In free agency, as in any sports, a team goes for the best talent rather than the piece they need.
3 ways the 25-year-old Japanese can help the LA-based club:
1. Stand-in pitcher for Dodgers while Ohtani is out.
Yes, Ohtani is the best player in the league right now. The two-time American League MVP receives that distinction for his ability to play as a pitcher and a batter at the top level. He devastates opposing teams as two-way player but for the 2024 season, he is not allowed to pitch after undergoing elbow surgery.
This is where Yamamoto signing becomes a genius move. The 25-year-old is not afraid of big moments. He is a fully-formed ace and does not need to start from the bullpen.
Read more: Blue Jays Need to Hustle After Missing Out on Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto
Dodgers have in them a pitcher who has the wares to perform on the big stage. Yamamoto is a three-time MVP in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball and received Eiji Sawamura Award three straight times.
2. Provides depth/improves bullpen.
Manager Dave Roberts has a good problem in front of him. Dodgers' bench became deeper. Yamamoto can be the starting pitcher but Glasnow can take over for him, too.
He joins a team that already has old reliables in Walker Buehler, Bobby Miller, and Emmet Sheehan.
The team had problems with their lineup in the 2023 playoffs, leading to a 0-3 rout in the hands of the Arizona Cardinals.
Legend Clayton Kershaw has been out since then and Yamamoto can be a stand-in for him while the former's new contract is still under negotiations. Interestingly, Yamamoto is one of the few players who can throw a Kershaw curveball. They can have time together to perfect it.
In terms of the bullpen, it drastically improved with the addition of the Japanese star. They currently have Yency Almonte, Michael Grove Alex Vesia and Caleb Ferguson who all had their fair share of struggle last season.
3. Broaden Dodgers fanbase.
This part here is not about field performance or Yamamoto's talent but it would be foolish to think that Yamamoto is not a business move for the Dodgers.
Ohtani widened the market of the Los Angeles Angels since arriving there in 2018 and now that he is in the Dodgers with another popular Japanese player, tickets and merchandise sales will go up, too.
Viewership will also be huge for the Dodgers and the MLB with Yamamoto. The league can reap marketing and promotional benefits to connect to an international audience and expand its fan base.
Related article: Yoshinobu Yamamoto - 5 Things You Didn't Know About New Dodgers Star
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