TORONTO — The weight of the World Series MVP trophy proved a bit much for Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who needed some assistance in hoisting it.
This was hardly unexpected, given the substantial workload he shouldered in the series’ concluding pair of contests.
Yamamoto punctuated a stretch of dominant pitching in the World Series with 2⅔ innings of shutout relief to seal the decisive game. This followed a 96-pitch outing in the Dodgers’ Game 6 triumph, in addition to his stellar four-hit performance in Game 2, as Los Angeles secured a repeat championship in a gripping Series against the Toronto Blue Jays.
“It’s pretty crazy,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts observed regarding Yamamoto’s demanding schedule. “I’m kind of crazy for sending him back out there. But I just felt he was the best option.”
Evidently, it was. Yamamoto navigated a bases-loaded situation in the ninth, maintaining a 4-4 tie. After a smooth tenth, he skillfully managed Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s leadoff double in the 11th to preserve the 5-4 lead and clinch L.A.’s second straight title.
“Yamamoto is the GOAT!” Roberts exclaimed just before the Dodgers celebrated with the World Series trophy.
Yet, Yamamoto himself expressed some uncertainty about his ability to deliver in Game 7.
“Before I went in, to be honest, I was not really sure if I could pitch up there to my best ability,” he confessed via an interpreter. “But as I started getting warmed up, because I started making a little bit of an adjustment, then I started thinking I can go in and do my job.”
At 27, Yamamoto is the fourth pitcher to claim victories in Games 6 and 7 of the same World Series, following in the footsteps of Randy Johnson in 2001, Harry Brecheen in 1946, and Ray Kremer in 1925. Yamamoto and Johnson stand alone as the only pitchers since 1969 to secure three wins in a single World Series.
Yamamoto’s Game 7 cap is slated for display at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.
“That was incredible,” lauded catcher Will Smith, who blasted the Dodgers’ go-ahead homer in the 11th. “I talked to him yesterday, saying `Hey, if you can give us one we’re going to win.’ He gave us three. That was special. He’ll have a few months off. I know he’s going to need it, but I’m just happy for him. That was awesome.”
Having signed a 12-year, $325 million contract with the team after coming from Japan before last season, Yamamoto was 3-0 with a 1.09 ERA against the Toronto Blue Jays. He struck out 15 and walked two over 17⅔ innings, allowing two runs and 10 hits.
“He’s one of the best arms in the game,” Toronto’s Addison Barger noted. “He did a great job. Kind of freaky that he came in and pitched today after yesterday. I don’t know what they’re doing over there, how he did that without his arm falling off.”
Blue Jays slugger George Springer emphasized Yamamoto’s diverse repertoire as a significant factor in his effectiveness.
“He’s elite,” Springer affirmed. “There’s no other way to describe it. He’s elite. He can control six or seven different types of spin, and obviously, that split is hard to hit.”
Yamamoto’s Game 2 masterpiece marked his second consecutive complete game of the postseason. He retired the final 20 batters in a 5-1 Dodgers triumph.
This followed a three-hitter against Milwaukee in the National League Championship Series, marking the first postseason complete game in eight years.
Prior to this, no pitcher had lasted the entire distance in the Fall Classic since Kansas City’s Johnny Cueto tossed a two-hitter against the New York Mets in Game 2 of the 2015 World Series.
Yamamoto exhibited less sharpness in Game 6, conceding one run and five hits over six innings, as Los Angeles prevailed 3-1 to force the Game 7 showdown.
Including a victory in Game 2 of last year’s World Series against the New York Yankees, Yamamoto holds a 4-0 record with a stellar 1.13 ERA across four Fall Classic appearances.
Arizona’s Curt Schilling was the last pitcher to deliver consecutive complete games in the postseason, achieving the feat with three in a row during the 2001 NL Division Series and NLCS.
Before him, Orel Hershiser was the last Dodgers pitcher with a solo Series effort, doing so in Games 2 and 5 against Oakland in 1988. Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax achieved two Series complete games each in 1963 and 1965.
Yamamoto pitched 12 complete games in his last three seasons with the Orix Buffaloes of Japan’s Pacific League before joining the Dodgers.
