Yoshinobu Yamamoto joined the Dodgers in Los Angeles after being chased hard by both New York teams in an attempt to sign with an MLB team.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post, however, claims that the right-hander’s decision was not greatly influenced by his location. Rather, it was the Dodgers’ winning tradition that pulled him in.
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“I really got the impression that the Dodgers were very successful for a very long time,” Yamamoto said to Sherman through a translator. “And just that the atmosphere with the organization was really good.”
In December, Yamamoto reached a $325 million, 12-year contract with Los Angeles. The 25-year-old was given the same deal by the Mets, while the Yankees made a ten-year, $300 million offer.
The Mets and Yankees “communicated with me that they were really serious about having me on their team,” Yamamoto said to Sherman.
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Yamamoto had his third consecutive season in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball league with a sub-2 ERA last year. Because of his skill and youth, many teams were keeping a close eye on him when he entered the MLB free agency. He recorded a 1.21 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, and 169 strikeouts in 164 innings during the Orix Buffaloes’ previous season. He also won his third Eiji Sawamura Award, the Japanese equivalent of the Cy-Young Award.