The record-breaking 12-year, $325 million contract that Yoshinobu Yamamoto signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers at the end of December contains some interesting stipulations regarding the Japanese superstar's arm health.
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According to a Tuesday report by The Associated Press, Yamamoto's contract contains two different opt-out opportunities, contingent on whether the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right arm remains intact. If Yamamoto has Tommy John surgery or is on the injured list for a right-elbow injury for 134 consecutive service days from 2024-29, he would have the right to opt out after the 2031 and 2033 World Series. In this case, the Dodgers also would gain a $10 million conditional option for 2036 with no buyout.
However, if Yamamoto both manages to avoid Tommy John surgery and doesn't miss that much time with an elbow issue during that window, he can instead opt out after the 2029 and 2031 World Series.
In other words, these opt-out stipulations are basically the Dodgers' way of guaranteeing that they'll have a healthy, active Yamamoto for the same number of seasons, regardless of whether his arm health holds up.
There are some other interesting aspects of Yamamoto's contract, such as that he does not have the right to block any trades but could opt out of the contract after the end of any season in which he is traded. Additionally, if Yamamoto is traded after a World Series, he would have the right to opt out in the subsequent offseason.
Yamamoto's contract — which is record-breaking because 12 years is the longest deal for a pitcher in MLB history — also includes some nice luxuries. One of them is that Yamamoto cannot be assigned to the minor leagues without his consent. The contract also guarantees that Yamamoto will have a full-time interpreter, personal trainer and physical therapist during his entire Dodgers tenure.
On road trips, Yamamoto gets a hotel suite as well as five roundtrip airline tickets each year — presumably for friends and family he wants to bring to games.
While it remains to be seen whether Yamamoto's gigantic contract — and all of the intriguing details that it contains — will manifest in success for the Dodgers, they've at least tried to arm themselves against injuries derailing Yamamoto's career.
Fellow newly signed star Shohei Ohtani is already unable to pitch during the 2024 MLB season due to Tommy John surgery. And Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers' other big-time pitching addition this offseason, underwent Tommy John surgery back in 2021. In addition, current pitchers Walker Buehler and Dustin May both required the same surgery in 2022 and 2023, respectively. So the Dodgers are surely hoping Yamamoto can avoid that same fate.
