Los Angeles starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto won the World Series in his rookie year, appeared in the All-Star Game in his second season, and pitched two complete games in his last two postseason starts as a starter.
Although he had an incredible start to his career, the pitcher has much higher ambitions for himself.
Yamamoto said he is certain to be inducted into the Hall of Fame over teammate Clayton Kershaw, who will retire after the 2025 season.
Yamamoto said, “From the bottom of my heart, I want to become an ace pitcher like Kershaw, and I want to do my best to surpass my great seniors someday.”
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Yamamoto, 27, put up incredible numbers in his first two seasons in MLB, starting 18 games with a 3.00 ERA in 2024 and starting 30 games with a 2.49 ERA in 2025. The right-hander was the only pitcher to start 30 games during the 2025 regular season, and also led pitchers with a bWAR of 5.0, the next closest being Tyler and Glasnow’s 1.9.
His postseason performance over the past two seasons has been impressive, starting a total of eight games and posting a 2.47 ERA.
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His numbers are impressive considering the two-season sample size, but Kershaw is in a league of his own.
The left-hander led all active players with a regular-season ERA of 2.53 during his 18 years in MLB, winning the MVP, three Cy Young Awards, and two World Series. In addition to these honors, Kershaw has also appeared in the All-Star Game 11 times.
There is a huge gap between the two at the moment, but Yamamoto has had a great career and if things continue to go well, the gap could close soon. His next challenge will be Game 6 of the World Series, where he will look to even the series with a road three.
Game 6 begins Friday, October 31st at 5pm PT.
Photo credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
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