Though it definitely helped, Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s decision to sign with the Dodgers wasn’t contingent on Shohei Ohtani.

On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Dodgers made the official announcement that they had signed the Japanese sensation. In their most recent huge free-agent signing of the summer, the team inked Yamamoto to a $325 million, 12-year contract. It followed earlier this winter’s record agreement with Shohei Ohtani, another Japanese superstar.

Even if the Ohtani signing pushed Yamamoto in the right direction, he admitted on Wednesday that he was likely going to sign with the Dodgers regardless. There were rumours of numerous other huge offers.

“I wouldn’t claim he was the only one who influenced my decision to come here. Despite his departure, Yamamoto said, “I likely would have ended up in L.A. as a Dodger.” The statement was made via an interpreter. Above and beyond that, Shohei is clearly not merely a great Japanese player, but a top MLB player overall. It is a great honor for me to be able to continue playing with him.

When it comes to Nippon Professional Baseball, Yamamoto is up there with the best of them. In a career that began when he was 18 years old, Yamamoto went on to post an ERA of 1.82. Yamamoto has been unstoppable over the last three years, winning the Japan Series, the World Baseball Classic, the Triple Crown three times, MVP three times in the Pacific League, and the Sawamura Award three times—the Japanese version of the Cy Young. His three consecutive MVP victories make him the second pitcher in league history to do it, and the first player to do so since Ichiro Suzuki.

The Dodgers and Yamamoto recently inked a 12-year, $325 million contract, making it the biggest pitching deal in Major League Baseball history. This was an improvement above Gerrit Cole’s 2019 $324 million deal with the Yankees. Unlike Ohtani’s pact, Yamamoto’s deal allegedly includes two opt-outs but does not feature any deferrals.

Winning three MVP awards by the age of 25 requires an extraordinary blend of skill, dedication, and resilience, according to Andrew Friedman, president of baseball operations for the Dodgers.

He’s already a top-tier pitcher, and his intensity and commitment to the game will only grow when he wears the Dodger uniform. We are overjoyed that he will continue to be a key cog in our starting lineup for many more seasons.

During this offseason, the Dodgers have spent over $1 billion on free agents. In addition to Yamamoto, the club also signed Ohtani to a huge seven-figure, ten-year contract. The record-breaking deal featured enormous salary deferrals that will cause Ohtani to receive the majority of his compensation after the contract expires. In addition to acquiring pitcher Tyler Glasnow in a trade, the Dodgers extended his contract by five years and $136.5 million.

“The Dodgers community has had an exciting couple of weeks,” stated general manager Brandon Gomes, as reported by MLB.com. “Adding a starting pitcher of Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s caliber is a fantastic way to cap off 2023 and set the stage for an exciting 2024 season.”

On March 20, 2024, the Dodgers will face the San Diego Padres in the opening game of the season. Although they have only won the World Series once in the previous eleven seasons, the Dodgers have made it to the playoffs every single year. They lost in the National League Division Series (NLDS) the previous two seasons and were swept 3-0 by the Arizona Diamondbacks earlier this fall.