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Los Angeles Dodgers star Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the team’s ace, has exceeded expectations after coming over from Japan.
Yamamoto is one of MLB’s best pitchers, and he’s proven that, even at the highest level, he can get outs at a high clip and use his splitter to devastating effect.
The Japanese pitcher has pitched at an elite level and, for the most part, stayed healthy.
He missed almost three months with a right rotator cuff strain, though there was no structural damage, and it was his only time on the IL.
His health, especially his right elbow, has been a major concern on multiple fronts, but none more than his future in contact.
After the 2029 season, Yamamoto can opt out of his 12-year, $325 million contract and sign an even bigger deal if he continues to avoid Tommy John surgery in his right elbow, or avoids a 134-day injured list stint.
The Dodgers will be more than willing to pay Yamamoto top dollar when he hits the market, hoping to keep him in Los Angeles for his whole career.
However, the collective bargaining agreement expires in December, and a salary cap could tighten spending restrictions.
Yamamoto will enter the market three seasons into the new CBA and its free-agent rules, when the team may find it harder to stomach a big-money deal with so much money already committed for the next half-decade.
Yamamoto’s case is evidence the players’ association can point to when arguing for a spending cap.
If he enters the market and truly explores it, Yamamoto could become the first pitcher to reach $500 million, or even $600 million.
With a cap in place, the Dodgers and other big-market teams would be limited in how much they could spend.
The Dodgers will move mountains to keep Yamamoto, and he is certainly loving his time in LA, but it may take a lot of maneuvering and possible salary shedding to keep him.
Yamamoto will keep his fingers crossed that there is no salary cap, so he can reach the record-setting money that he has earned.
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