"He wanted a team that was going to win" - Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes reverberates reason that influenced Yoshinobu Yamamoto's decision
Between his posting date and the announcement of his deal with the Dodgers. Yoshinobu Yamamoto kept his cards close to his chest. Few, if anyone, was sure of the real motives of the three-time NPB MVP.
Speculation was put to rest on December 27, when the 25-year old inked a twelve year, $325 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The deal was the largest ever given to an international free agent, and came mere weeks after the team moved to ink Shohei Ohtani to the biggest contract in professional sports history.
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For a long time, the New York Yankees were seen as the prime contender to lock down Yamamoto. The team's GM, Brian Cashman, was in Japan last September to witness Yamamoto toss a no-hitter for the Orix Buffaloes.
Although the Yankees reportedly tabled a $300 million offer, it was the Dodgers who eventually won Yoshinobu Yamamoto over. In a recent podcast appearance, Brandon Gomes, the GM of the Los Angeles Dodgers, addressed a possible reason why the Japanese superstar chose his team.
Speaking on Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman's podcast The Show, Gomes claimed that winning was the biggest factor influencing Yamamoto's decision. Gomes, a former MLB player himself, told the hosts:
"He wanted a team that was going to win"
In the weeks preceding Yamamoto's deal, the Dodgers were on a roll. After signing Ohtani, the team traded for, an extended former Tampa Bay Rays ace Tyler Glasnow. It is likely that seeing these moves come to fruition made Yamamoto believe that the Dodgers had a superlative chance of winning, especially when compared to other suitors who might have been in the mix.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto will find himself on one of baseball's most stacked teams ever
Although the Dodgers offered Yamamoto marginally more money than the other possible destination clubs, Gomes holds that winning was, and is the biggest factor for Yamamoto.
Now, on a team stacked to the brim with world-class talent, Yamamoto will have pressure and opportunity to perform at his best in 2024. He has played in some very big games in Japan, but those instances will probably pale in comparison to a possible postseason run in Los Angeles. For Yamamoto, the baptism of fire of his MLB career will come bearing down on him, and fans can only hope that he is ready.