Yoshinobu Yamamoto carved up the Atlanta Braves in Game 3 of the NLDS on Tuesday night, delivering seven dominant innings and striking out 10 for a postseason career high with the Dodgers. The dude was lights out, allowing only one run on just 98 pitches to secure the win in Atlanta. Manager Dave Roberts couldn’t stop praising him, telling reporters, “Wow, what a performance. He just has a way to just make pitches, calm his heartbeat. And I think he made two mistakes all night the first pitch to [Matt] Olson; Lane Thomas, that cutter that just didn’t get there. But outside of that he was awesome.” Honestly, it’s not much of a surprise given his regular season form, where he’s allowed zero or one run in 15 of his 29 starts this year. Talk about consistency.
October Ace Status: Confirmed
Yamamoto isn’t just good, he’s building an October legend right now. He’s made 11 total postseason appearances for the Dodgers, with 10 starts and one relief outing, and the team has won 10 of those games. His own postseason record? A ridiculous 8-1 with a stingy 2.14 ERA. What’s even wilder is his current streak: his last five postseason outings, stretching back to last year’s NLCS, have all been wins. And get this: Yoshinobu Yamamoto is the only pitcher in MLB history to earn the win in five straight postseason appearances while not allowing more than 1 run or 1 walk in any of them. Every single one of those five wins came on the road. You gotta be kidding me with that stat. That’s pure 🔥.
Joining the Franchise Strikeout Legends
That 10-strikeout performance on Tuesday didn’t just win a game, it put Yamamoto in some seriously elite company. It was only the 20th postseason game in Dodgers franchise history where a pitcher hit double-digit strikeouts. Only 13 different pitchers have ever done it. Clayton Kershaw leads the pack with six such games, including a 13-strikeout masterpiece against the Brewers in Game 2 of the 2020 wild card series. We’re talking about names that echo through baseball history. Don Newcombe was the first, fanning 11 Yankees in Game 1 of the 1949 World Series, though he took a tough 1-0 loss. Carl Erskine then set a World Series record with 14 strikeouts against the Yankees in Game 3 of the 1953 World Series. That record stood for a decade until Sandy Koufax absolutely blew it away with 15 strikeouts in Game 1 of the 1963 World Series, also against the Yankees. Mickey Mantle himself famously said of Koufax, “Everything I read about him was true, and everything they told us about him also was true. What a pitcher!” Koufax wasn’t a one-off either, logging three double-digit strikeout games in the World Series, including two 10-K shutouts within four days in 1965. Yamamoto is now officially in *that* conversation.
Yamamoto’s performance in the NLDS Game 3 was more than just a win; it was a statement. He’s locking in his role as a postseason powerhouse, writing his name next to some of the greatest pitchers to ever wear the uniform. With those numbers and that historical company, it’s clear Yamamoto is on a mission to add more legendary moments to his resume as this postseason rolls on.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by True Blue LA.
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