The Los Angeles Dodgers‘ rotation is getting back a major building block next week.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto will make his return from the injured list on Tuesday after missing nearly three months due to a rotator cuff strain, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Wednesday. Yamamoto will face the Chicago Cubs at home.
Yamamoto made two rehab starts before the announcement, pitching two innings in each for the Triple-A Oklahoma City club. He allowed three earned runs while striking out five and walking two.
The return will be welcome news for a Dodgers rotation that has been ravaged by injuries all year. Clayton Kershaw and Tyler Glasnow are both still trying to make it back to the team, and Bobby Miller and Walker Buehler are struggling to return to form.
With less than a month to go before the MLB postseason, the Dodgers are going to want as much clarity as possible on their starting pitching, given what happened last year, when the Arizona Diamondbacks feasted on a ravaged rotation.
Yamamoto was an early standout for the Dodgers after he joined the team on a pitcher-record, 12-year, $325 million contract last offseason. He held a 2.92 ERA with 84 strikeouts in 74 innings across 14 starts before his injury in his outing on June 15.
The biggest concern around Yamamoto as he joined MLB was his durability. Injuries weren’t an issue during his career in Japan, but his smaller stature at 5-foot-10 and 176 pounds and former adherence to the weekly Japanese pitching schedule left some wondering if he could pitch every five days in MLB. A single injury doesn’t vindicate those worries, but it makes Yamamoto’s ability to finish the season significant for his future.