Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws complete game as Dodgers beat Yankees

NEW YORK — The Dodgers came to the Bronx with a chance to make another statement against the Yankees. By the end of Sunday morning, Yoshinobu Yamamoto had made the loudest one of all.

Yamamoto delivered the first regular-season complete game of his major league career, carving through New York with ruthless efficiency as the Dodgers rolled to an 8-2 victory in Game 1 of Sunday's doubleheader at Yankee Stadium. More importantly, he gave the Dodgers exactly what they desperately needed: nine innings.

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Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (18) pitches against the New York Yankees during the third inning at Yankee Stadium.

With a bullpen game already scheduled for the nightcap after Emmet Sheehan was pushed back to Monday, Dave Roberts needed length. Yamamoto responded with the kind of outing that can reshape an entire day for a pitching staff.

He needed just 102 pitches to finish the job, allowing two runs on four hits while striking out seven without issuing a walk. It was the Dodgers' first complete game since June 26, 2024, and another reminder why the club entrusted Yamamoto to anchor its rotation.

At 63-36, the Dodgers also clinched the series at Yankee Stadium, continuing to handle business against one of baseball's marquee opponents.

The day began with significant news surrounding Shohei Ohtani. Roberts announced that Ohtani will no longer make his scheduled pitching start Wednesday as the club allows more time for lingering inflammation in his left knee following a recent procedure.

"I would say that it's going to be some time," Roberts said of Ohtani's absence from the mound. "It's not going to be a day-to-day thing."

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Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) follows through on an RBI double against the New York Yankees during the third inning at Yankee Stadium.

The silver lining for the Dodgers is that Ohtani remains healthy enough to continue serving as the designated hitter. He immediately showed why that's such an important distinction.

Leading off the third inning, Ohtani ripped a double off the wall in right-center, setting the tone for the Dodgers' offense and helping produce the game's first run for a 1-0 lead.

Yamamoto, meanwhile, was nearly untouchable.

His lone mistake through the first eight innings came in the fourth when, for the first time all afternoon, he fell behind in the count. Trent Grisham capitalized on a 2-0 fastball left over the plate, launching a towering solo homer into the second deck in right field to trim the Dodgers' lead to 2-1.

It was little more than a brief interruption.

The Dodgers answered in the fifth when Andy Pages drove an RBI double into right field, scoring Tommy Edman to restore a two-run cushion at 3-1. From there, Yamamoto settled back into complete control, pounding the strike zone and refusing to give the Yankees any free opportunities.

The offense finally put the game away with an overwhelming five-run eighth inning.

Teoscar Hernández opened the floodgates with an RBI ground-rule double to make it 4-1. Tommy Edman followed with a two-run single, extending the lead to 6-1 before Ohtani continued his torrid stretch with an RBI single. The hit gave Ohtani 11 hits over his last nine games while pushing the advantage to 7-1.

Freddie Freeman capped the rally with a sacrifice fly that scored Edman, stretching the lead to 8-1 and removing any remaining drama.

Yamamoto returned for the ninth, determined to finish what he started.

Anthony Volpe's RBI single accounted for New York's final run, but the right-hander never wavered, recording the final outs himself to complete a masterpiece that was as valuable as it was dominant.

Complete games have become increasingly rare across baseball. On a day when the Dodgers needed every inning they could save, Yamamoto delivered all nine.