The Dodgers anointed Shohei Ohtani because the highest-paid participant in baseball historical past final December. In his first postseason recreation with the Dodgers, the $700-million man delivered: a house run, two hits, two runs scored, three runs pushed in.
The Dodgers anointed Yoshinobu Yamamoto because the highest-paid pitcher (exterior of Ohtani) in baseball historical past final December. In his first postseason recreation with the Dodgers, the $325-million man didn’t ship.
Yamamoto put the Dodgers in a 3-0 gap within the first inning. He gave up two extra runs within the third. He didn’t see the fourth.
In the long run, none of that mattered. The Dodgers scored extra runs in a single recreation Saturday than they did of their complete postseason final 12 months. Their bullpen pitched six shutout innings.
The Dodgers broke a six-game postseason dropping streak with a 7-5 victory over the San Diego Padres in Sport 1 of the Nationwide League Division Collection.
“Didn’t get an ideal start,” Dodgers supervisor Dave Roberts mentioned. “But guys in the ’pen picked us up, and the offense was relentless with their at-bats.”
Sport 2 is Sunday, with hometown star Jack Flaherty scheduled to start out for the Dodgers.
“What would, like, 8-year-old me say? It would be pretty cool,” Flaherty mentioned. “So I’m just trying to enjoy it.”
4 days in the past, the Padres clinched their journey to the division sequence by hammering Max Fried, Flaherty’s former teammate at Harvard-Westlake. On Sunday, the Padres — and a packed Dodger Stadium — await Flaherty.
“There’s going to be a lot going on, a lot of excitement with the crowd and the energy that they bring.” Flaherty mentioned. “And you just feed off of it, feed off of every single ounce of it.
“Same way in high school. Same thing. Just a couple more people out there.”
There have been greater than a few folks on the market on the bases in opposition to Yamamato. The primary two batters reached base. The third batter drove in a run. The fourth, Manny Machado, homered. In all, Yamamoto confronted 16 batters, seven of whom reached base.
Yamamoto gave up 5 runs — tying his season excessive — in three innings. After 60 pitches, he was executed.
“He was really down,” Ohtani mentioned, “so I’m glad we were able to win.”
The Dodgers trailed 5-3 when Roberts pulled Yamamoto. Did Roberts consider Yamamoto was tiring, or did he consider the Dodgers couldn’t afford to get any additional behind?
“Both,” Roberts mentioned. “I thought that there were some misses. I just felt that there was stress. I just thought that they were seeing him well.”
Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto reacts after giving up a two-run dwelling run to San Diego’s Manny Machado within the first inning Saturday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Instances)
The Dodgers detected that Yamamoto may need been tipping his pitches, permitting San Diego runners on second base to tip the San Diego hitters.
“That’s part of baseball,” Roberts mentioned. “So it’s on us to kind of clean that up and not give away what pitch he’s going to throw.”
5 Dodgers relievers — Ryan Brasier, Alex Vesia, Evan Phillips, Michael Kopech and Blake Treinen — mixed to throw the ultimate six innings. In a single stretch, the Padres despatched 19 males to the plate with out getting a success.
“I went around and talked to all the bullpen before the game today,” third baseman Max Muncy mentioned, “and said, ‘Hey guys, don’t be surprised by any situation, don’t be surprised by any phone call that comes down, no matter what inning, no matter what your role is, be prepared to come in the game and do whatever it takes.’
“And all those guys almost kind of just shoved me off, like, ‘Yeah, we know, we got this.’”
The Dodgers can solely hope that Yamamoto’s first postseason within the main leagues follows the course of his final postseason sequence in Japan.
On the verge of coming to America, Yamamoto took the mound for Sport 1 of the Japan Collection final fall. He gave up seven runs, a profession excessive, and his Orix Buffaloes misplaced.
He pitched once more within the sequence, and brilliantly. He gave up one run, struck out 14 and made 138 pitches. The Buffaloes gained.
The Dodgers organized their rotation so Yamamoto and Flaherty each can be accessible for a possible Sport 5. If the Dodgers’ relievers proceed to pitch nicely, the time without work earlier than Sport 3 and the time without work earlier than Sport 5 may permit the workforce to deploy a string of recent relievers behind Flaherty, minimizing the necessity for Yamamoto.
Would the Dodgers actually take into account skipping the highest-paid pitcher in baseball historical past in a must-win recreation? If defeat meant a 3rd consecutive elimination within the division sequence, they may.
After Saturday’s recreation, Roberts mentioned Yamamoto was “certainly in play” to make the Sport 5 begin.
He can be in play to start out? Or he would begin?
“He’ll probably start,” Roberts mentioned, exhaling after a wild evening. “I’m trying to get to Game 2.”
