The Los Angeles Dodgers witnessed Shohei Ohtani set the tone on the first pitch. Yoshinobu Yamamoto then kept the Cleveland Guardians in check with his pitching. But Dave Roberts opted to avoid pushing him to the fullest.
Yamamoto fired heat in six innings and took the win, as L.A. defeated Cleveland 7-2 on Memorial Day. The Dodgers’ top pitcher even outran a bunt. He could’ve gone further considering how masterful he threw. Roberts, though, avoided exerting him.
The two-time World Series champion manager explained his reasonings why Yamamoto sat via Sports Net LA after the win.
“We pushed him a lot his last outing. To not push him to the fullest tonight made sense as he gears up for Sunday,” Roberts said.
He added that the starting ace dealt with a hip issue too. But the lower body ailment is a non-issue, Yamamoto told his coach.
Yamamoto’s performance helped snap a two-game slide as well. The Dodgers took two of three losses to the New York Mets prior to facing the Guardians.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto kept Guardians on heels during Dodgers win
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The 26-year-old watched fellow Japanese star Ohtani ignite L.A. early. Yamamoto turned up the heat from there inside Progressive Field.
The right-handed thrower unleashed four-seam fastballs, cutters, curves and splitters right away. Jose Ramirez grounded out facing the array of pitches. Yamamoto then struck out two more batters off an 89 mph splitter.
The splitter worked again in the second — fanning Lane Thomas with that pitch. Steven Kwan of Cleveland broke the early scoreless streak off a fielder’s choice to shortstop. That lured Gabriel Arias home to cut the Dodgers lead at 2-1.
Yamamoto then forced a double play to close the bottom of the fourth. He forced two more strikeouts in his final inning of the sixth.
Alex Vesia entered the mound to relieve the Dodgers’ pitching horse. Tanner Scott and Luis Garcia emerged as the third and fourth pitching options to close out the game.
Roberts’ decision to rest Yamamoto means he’ll be ready for the World Series rematch with the New York Yankees. Sunday is the third and final game of that upcoming series.
