"Straight Talk" is a regular feature in which The Sporting Tribune's John E. Gibson offers a full translation of media availability with Dodgers Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki. He will also help translate when Clippers star Rui Hachimura and L.A. Galaxy captain Maya Yoshida are asked questions in Japanese.
The job of interpreters in the heat of the moment is difficult without the ability to write down questions and answers and re-hear responses for proper context. That's where John comes in to help. John currently works as a Japanese-English interpreter and covered pro baseball in Japan for about 20 years. His experience as a sports reporter includes stints at The Orange County Register, The Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, The Redlands Daily Facts, The Yomiuri Shimbun’s English newspaper in Tokyo and The Epoch Times.
LOS ANGELES — Yoshinobu Yamamoto (12-7) tosses six strong innings at home to earn a 3-1 victory over the visiting Milwaukee Brewers on Friday night and get the Los Angeles Dodgers even in their four-game series. Yamamoto scatters four hits and two walks, while punching out nine, and the bullpen makes three runs stand up.
Q: Yoshi, after that first inning, the pitch count got up just a little bit there. How did you get back on track, just manage yourself to get through six innings?
Yamamoto: In the first inning, more than usual, I felt like I was too aware of trying to be fine with my pitches. So that pushed the pitch count, which started to build. So, after the first inning, I regrouped mentally and from the second inning on, I was able to get back to pitching with the same feeling I usually have.
Q: The cutter usage has been up more recently. How valuable has that pitch become to your pitch mix?
Yamamoto: Well, it matters the game where in, and more so, it matters what batter I’m facing – I think that changes how many times I might throw it. It depends on the situation, yeah, this tough to answer, but, hmmm. It’s difficult to say. Yeah, there are situations when I use it and that might increase the number, but I’m not sure. I couldn’t say without reviewing things, but yeah, I don’t know.
Q: How good was it to see the bullpen bounce back after a tough night like last night and even though Edwin (Diaz) had to grind through, for him to ultimately put up a clean inning?
Yamamoto: Well, today he did some strong work out there. He got knocked around a bit yesterday, but after being right back off an injury, will all the things going on he has to find a feeling. But there’s no doubt he’s a good pitcher and when he makes an appearance, it gets the team going, and I love to see him come out. Even today, I wanted him to throw.