The "first" opening day took place this week, as the Dodgers and Padres met in Seoul South Korea in the Seoul Series, part of MLB's goal to expand the game globally. Each team took a turn as the home team over the two-game series that kicked off at 6am ET on both days. Coincidentally, both teams won when they were the away team, splitting the series 1-1 and giving each team (and us!) plenty to take away from the short series. Yamamoto's struggles, Xander and Mookie's strong starts, pitching issues?, all that, and more in this edition of the Dugout Dispatch!
Yamamoto's Yips?
Let's address the (second) biggest storyline of the weekend first. Yamamoto made his much-anticipated MLB debut in game two of the Seoul Series, and it's safe to say it did not go how he (or the Dodgers) intended it to. Yamamoto got to hit the showers early, finishing with a stat line of 1 IP, 5ER, 4H, 1BB, and 2Ks (good for an ERA of 45.00) as he only made it through the Padres lineup once. This is now Yamamoto's third consecutive rough outing, but unlike the last two (which was ST) this one counts.
Yamamoto struggled to throw strikes, especially early in the count. Of the 43 pitches he threw in his inning of work, Yamamoto only threw 23 for strikes, and most were after falling behind in the count, allowing hitters to lay off pitches on the corner for ones they can drive. Diving further into the start, the Padres frankly weren't fooled by any pitch Yamamoto was throwing. Yamamoto, he couldn't locate his trademark rainbow curveball or his splitter.
Yamamoto has a lot to learn from this start but there are some concerns. As good command as Yamamoto has on his fastball (which he throws in the upper 90s), it has no run and negligible rise, making it an easy target for MLB hitters who are used to seeing high velocity. This point was emphasized to Yamamoto on the first pitch of the game when Xander Bogarts smacked a 97mph fastball up the middle for a leadoff single. When Yamamoto's offspeed stuff isn't working, he could see more starts like this in the future and he and the Dodgers need to find a way to at least limit the damage when he doesn't have his A stuff.
Nobody expected Yamamoto to recreate the success he had in the NPB, but the Dodgers had to have expected more from the player they made the highest-paid pitcher in baseball history.
Ex-Sox Strong Starts
Once teammates and now division rivals, Xander Bogaerts and Mookie Betts started their 2024 campaigns off strong. Xander finished the series going 4/9 with one walk, three runs, and three RBIs as the Padres leadoff hitter. Xander was consistently a tough out and flashed a solid glove at second base, where he'll be playing full-time this season for the first time in his career. Xander did a great job of setting the tone for a Padres lineup that scored 15 runs in game 2, and it felt like he was hitting the ball hard every single time he was up.
Mookie, the ex-MVP, looked like the best player on a loaded Dodgers lineup. Betts finished the Seoul Series 6/9 with two walks, no strikeouts, and 7(!!) RBIs from the leadoff spot of the Dodgers lineup. Betts, like Xander, consistently hit the ball hard, and seemed impossible for the Padres to get out, laying off or fouling close pitches until he got a pitch he could drive.
It's fair to wonder how different the Red Sox would be if they signed these players, but it's looking like Padre and Dodger fans are happy with how this ended up.
Pitching Issues?
To preface this, it's still spring training for 28 other teams, but at times it looked that way for both the Padres and Dodgers pitchers.
In game 1, the Padres bullpen couldn't protect the lead, with Wandy Peralta, Jhony Brito, and Adrian Morejon struggling to find the zone and allowing the Dodgers to take a late lead. Padres starter, Yu Darvish, also couldn't make it through 4 innings, thanks to consistently going deep into counts and causing manager Mike Shildt to turn to his bullpen earlier than he would've liked.
In Game 2, the Padres starter, Joe Musgrove, struggled even more, allowing 5 earned runs on 7 hits over 2.2 innings. Luckily for Shildt, his offense was able to keep the distance as the Dodgers kept trying to claw back into the game, with Robert Suarez eventually shutting the door with a 4-out save.
On the Dodgers side, we've already covered Yamamoto's struggles but the next three Dodgers pitchers in game 2 combined to allow 5 earned over 5 innings. Of these three pitchers, the biggest culprit was Michael Grove (2IP, 4R, 3ER) who could be called upon to start this season. To take this a step further, the Dodgers used seven pitchers in game 2, and only two didn't allow an earned run. Ryan Yarbrough finished with 1.2IP and 1 run (unearned), and Greg Varland retired the only batter he saw on two pitches.
The Dodgers used most of their best bullpen arms in game one, but their rotation is full of young or injury-prone pitchers and their bullpen will have to be better if they want to meet their lofty expectations.
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