Is Yoshinobu Yamamoto MLB's best playoff pitcher ever? What the numbers say

Not even Japanese phenom and established postseason standout Yoshinobu Yamamoto managed to escape the Los Angeles Dodgers’ ongoing implosion. 

Tasked with helping the Dodgers rally from a crushing Game 1 loss, Yamamoto failed to make it out of the third inning on Monday night. The Brewers hammered him for four hits, three runs, and forced him to throw 75 pitches against 14 hitters; much of that work came in his final frame, with a third of his 36 pitches coming on Brice Turang’s 12-pitch walk. 

“Just didn’t seem like he had total control of all the pitches that he wanted, and it was making it tough for him to mix it,” Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy said.

The Dodgers return to Los Angeles only two games from elimination, and the conversation about Yamamoto’s place in the all-time postseason pitcher rankings has temporarily stalled — or, we suppose, it had stalled, because we’re willing to revisit the debate. 

Where does Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto rank among the greatest MLB postseason pitchers?

As with most baseball questions, this isn’t a simple yes-or-no question. Comparing Yamamoto to Dodgers legend Sandy Koufax (0.95 ERA in 57 postseason innings) strictly off numbers doesn’t work because the latter only pitched in the World Series, whereas Yamamoto plays in a time when some teams go through four playoff series. 

So where do you set the baseline? Is it 1969, when Major League Baseball introduced the League Championship Series? What about 1995, the first year of the Division Series? Or do you follow CBS Sports’ lead and pick 1947, the same year Jackie Robinson integrated baseball?

Upon reflection, we decided on 1969 and the initial expanded playoff format. But there’s a far greater issue: Yamamoto has only thrown 65.2 playoff innings, whereas pitchers like Curt Schilling (2.23 ERA in 133.1 postseason innings) and Jon Lester (2.51 ERA in 154 postseason innings) have far greater workloads. 

Let's take a quick look at how Yamamoto and Schilling compare, because the numbers are fascinating:

Personally, we’re going with Schilling, and we know it’ll be a divisive pick for on- and off-field reasons. But objectively, you realize how dominant the six-time All-Star was when the October lights came on.

People naturally think of the Bloody Sock game and the 2001 World Series, but some of his other postseason numbers are absolutely incredible:

• He threw four complete games, three of which came in his first three starts of the 2001 playoffs. 
• Only 12 home runs allowed in those 133.1 innings, despite most of that work coming during the Steroid Era. 
• After walking 10 hitters in 31.1 innings during the 1993 playoffs, Schilling gave up just 15 free passes over his next 102 postseason frames. 

If not for his controversial social media feed, Schilling presumably would have entered the Hall of Fame long ago. His numbers have aged incredibly well in an era of bullpen games and pitchers being pulled before facing the lineup a third time. 

Can Yoshinobu Yamamoto become the greatest pitcher in MLB playoff history?

In theory, Yamamoto has plenty of time to pass Schilling on our personal list. He doesn’t turn 28 until next August, and the two-time All-Star should draw another NLCS start if the Dodgers can force a Game 5. 

But as we’ve pointed out before, we’re old-school in that we value pitching deeper into games. Yamamoto is off to a strong start (pun not intended) in that regard, as he’s thrown two complete games and recorded at least 19 outs (6.1 innings) on three other occasions. 

"I expect him to bounce back and have another great start next time we see him," Dodgers catcher Will Smith said after Game 2.

If it’s any consolation to Dodgers fans, Yamamoto is easily the pitcher we’d trust most in the current playoff format, and that’d also hold for the proposed expanded postseason. 

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