In the winter of 2024, the Los Angeles Dodgers did something unprecedented. And we’re not even talking about Shohei.
They gave a 12-year, $325 million contract to a pitcher who hadn’t thrown a single pitch in Major League Baseball.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s posting situation dominated the entire offseason. It was that, and where Ohtani was going to sign. The answer ended up being the same for both.
He was tearing it up in the NPB, winning three straight Eiji Sawamura Awards — their equivalent of the Cy Young. Still, people were skeptical. Including us. How do you hand over more money than Gerrit Cole to a pitcher who’s never faced a big-league hitter?
Well. After one of the greatest World Series performances from any pitcher in 2025, Yamamoto shut us up. Collectors bought in wholeheartedly.
With every start, Yoshi keeps proving the doubters wrong, and that $325 million is starting to look like a bargain. He’s already a two-time champ, and even on a rotation stacked with four or five ace-caliber arms, he stands out.
So we want to know: is the World Series price spike due for a correction? Or is there still room to grow for this perennial Cy Young candidate?
Let’s rip in.
