Yamamoto dominated Crew in NLCS; can he conquer them in regular-season start?
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MILWAUKEE -- It was only seven months ago that Yoshinobu Yamamoto toed the slab at American Family Field for Game 2 of the National League Championship Series. The result? One of the greatest starts in Dodgers postseason history.
The right-hander allowed a first-pitch homer to Jackson Chourio in that start, but cruised the rest of the way, allowing two more hits and a walk en route to the first complete game in the playoffs since Justin Verlander in the 2017 ALCS.
Yamamoto will return to the mound in Milwaukee on Sunday for the first time since that gem.
This season, Yamamoto has been dealing with the same trouble he did in that game -- first-inning homers. The 27-year-old tossed seven innings of one-run ball in his last start against the Padres, but took the loss thanks to Miguel Andujar’s solo blast in the first inning.
Seven of the 21 earned runs Yamamoto has allowed in his 57 innings pitched this season have come in the opening inning. He’s also allowed nine homers already this year after giving up only 14 across 173 2/3 frames in 2025.
It’s a problem Yamamoto will have to avoid after watching fellow starter Justin Wrobleski give up four runs on six hits in the first inning against the Brewers on Friday night. It’s a problem Yamamoto knows too well. In his most recent regular-season start (July 7) at American Family Field, he was unable to escape the first inning for the first time in his MLB career after giving up five runs (three earned) in two-thirds of an inning.
Yamamoto has been one of the Dodgers’ most reliable arms this year, though, tossing a quality start in seven of his nine outings so far. That’s been a big boost while starters Blake Snell (elbow) and Tyler Glasnow (back) are still on the IL.
Yamamoto enters the series finale with a 3.32 ERA, but has been even better on the road with a 2.77 mark in four starts. The Dodgers look for another deep outing from one of their aces as they go through a stretch of 16 games in 17 days. It’s only May, but how Yamamoto and the Dodgers perform against this NL-best Brewers squad could have an impact if the pair meet in the postseason again.