Back in mid-March, a key thing for me was to watch the Tokyo Series between the Cubs and the Dodgers. The Dodgers swept the Cubs to have a good start in the 2025 season. The Dodgers decided to let 2 Japanese pitchers start each game. The starter of the first game was Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Roki Sasaki took the mound in the second game and it was his MLB debut.
Roki Sasaki tossed 3 innings in his MLB debut. He gave up 5 walks and struck out 3 batters. Sasaki gave up 1 run in his debut. His performance wasn’t outstanding. However, it wasn’t a bad one. After watching his performance, I began to think about a question. There are several Japanese pitchers who used to play for the Dodgers. In their first game as a Dodger, did they pitch well?
To solve my doubt, I decided to check on the great baseball reference website.
Firstly, no one will forget “The Tornado”. Hideo Nomo, who dramatically changed the world of baseball, made his MLB debut on May 2, 1995. He did a great job in that game. Nomo tossed 5 innings against the Giants without giving up any runs. He threw 7 strikeouts and gave up only 1 hit.
In 2002, Ishii joined the Dodgers. On April 6, 2002, he made his MLB debut. Ishii threw 5.2 innings with 10 strikeouts and 3 walks. He gave up 2 hits but didn’t allow any runs. Ishii’s first start as a Dodger was quite solid.
In addition, Masao Kida pitched for the Dodgers in 2003 and 2004. Previously, he pitched 2 seasons for the Detroit Tigers. In his debut as a Dodger, he tossed 5 innings against the Cubs, giving up 2 runs (all earned). He also struck out 4 batters and walked 2 batters.
Moreover, Takashi Saito made his MLB debut on April 9, 2006. He only used 4 pitches to toss 0.2 innings. He didn’t give up any runs.
Furthermore, Hiroki Kuroda made his MLB debut on April 4, 2008. Kuroda tossed 7 innings against the Padres, giving up 3 hits and 1 run. At the same time, he threw 4 strikeouts without allowing any free passes. In 2016, Kenta Maeda made his debut on April 6 and it was against the Padres as well. Maeda threw 6 innings without giving up any walks and runs. Also, he struck out 4 batters.
In 2017, Yu Darvish was traded from the Rangers to the Dodgers. On August 4, Darvish made his Dodgers debut, tossing 7 innings without allowing any runs against the Mets. He threw 10 strikeouts and gave up only 1 walk.
Last year, Yoshinobu Yamamoto made his MLB debut in Korea on March 21. However, it was a tough start. Yamamoto only tossed 1 inning in his first start and gave up 5 runs (all earned).
Looking back at 9 Japanese pitchers’ first game as a Dodger, Yoshinobu Yamamoto is the one who gave up the most runs. However, there are several pitchers who tossed at least 5 innings without allowing any runs. Well, Roki Sasaki didn’t throw many innings in his debut and he gave up 5 walks, that might be something to improve. Nonetheless, there’s a key thing to watch this season. Shohei Ohtani, who won the 2024 NL MVP award, will be back to the mound this year. And it will be extremely interesting to watch his pitching debut as a Dodger. Hopefully, it will come soon.
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