LOS ANGELES — Yoshinobu Yamamoto sat in the dugout. He had just finished pitching six innings in his final start of the regular season on Wednesday, Sept. 23 and one of the first things he did was bury his head in his notebook as he began to write.
The Los Angeles Dodgers’ ace had posted a mixed bag in a 5-1 loss to the San Diego Padres in their penultimate home game before the postseason. Yamamoto was confident in his gameplan, which may have included throwing his four-seam fastball at a far lower clip (13%) than his usual usage rate of 27%. Instead, he threw his sinker more often, which he says wasn’t predetermined but rather he threw pitches that he felt fit each situation.
But there was one that kept nagging at Yamamoto for the rest of the night.
In the top of the fourth inning, Yamamoto threw a first pitch sinker to Manny Machado. His intention was to throw it high and get the Padres’ three-hole hitter to chase, but instead it fell just on the inner half of the plate – exactly the location where Machado has a .709 career slugging percentage – and he instantly made Yamamoto pay by sending it over the fence in straightaway center field.
To make matters worse, Yamamoto had plunked the previous batter, Dustin Harris, so it ended up being a two-run homer to push San Diego ahead.
“I felt really frustrated about that,” Yamamoto said through an interpreter. “I also need to reflect deeply on the play after that, and I want to look back and review the video carefully.”
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
The New York Yankees lead the pack by a wide margin with 27 World Series titles, the most championships in major American professional sports. They’re followed by the St. Louis Cardinals, who have won the Fall Classic 11 times, while the back-to-back champion Los Angeles Dodgers have catapulted into the No. 3 spot with their ninth championship − and third in the last five years − in 2025. Also tied for third-most World Series are the Boston Red Sox and the Athletics. The A’s former neighbors across the Bay, the San Francisco Giants, are fourth (eight championships). The Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates round out the top five with five titles apiece. Here’s a complete ranking of every MLB club by World Series titles:
(Bettmann, Bettmann Archive via Getty Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
The New York Yankees lead the pack by a wide margin with 27 World Series titles, the most championships in major American professional sports. They’re followed by the St. Louis Cardinals, who have won the Fall Classic 11 times, while the back-to-back champion Los Angeles Dodgers have catapulted into the No. 3 spot with their ninth championship − and third in the last five years − in 2025. Also tied for third-most World Series are the Boston Red Sox and the Athletics. The A’s former neighbors across the Bay, the San Francisco Giants, are fourth (eight championships). The Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates round out the top five with five titles apiece. Here’s a complete ranking of every MLB club by World Series titles:
(Bettmann, Bettmann Archive via Getty Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Atlanta Braves – 4 titles (1914, 1957, 1995, 2021)
(CHRIS WILKINS, AFP via Getty Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Detroit Tigers – 4 titles (1935, 1945, 1968, 1984)
(Mary Schroeder, Detroit Free Press via USA TODAY Network)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Baltimore Orioles – 3 titles (1966, 1970, 1983)
(PORTER BINKS, USA TODAY)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Chicago Cubs – 3 titles (1907, 1908, 2016)
(Ezra Shaw, Getty Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Chicago White Sox – 3 titles (1906, 1917, 2005)
(Eileen Blass, USA TODAY)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Minnesota Twins – 3 titles (1924, 1987, 1991)
(ROBERT DEUTSCH, USA TODAY)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Cleveland Guardians – 2 titles (1920, 1948)
(Bettmann Archive via Getty Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Houston Astros – 2 titles (2017, 2022)
(Gary A. Vasquez, Imagn Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Kansas City Royals – 2 titles (1985, 2015)
(ROBERT DEUTSCH, USA TODAY)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Miami Marlins – 2 titles (1997, 2003)
(H. DARR BEISER, USA TODAY)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
New York Mets – 2 titles (1969, 1986)
(Bettmann Archive via Getty Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Philadelphia Phillies – 2 titles (1980, 2008)
(H. Darr Beiser, USA TODAY)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Toronto Blue Jays – 2 titles (1992, 1993)
(Rick Stewart, Getty Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Arizona Diamondbacks – 1 title (2001)
(JACK GRUBER, USA TODAY)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Los Angeles Angels – 1 title (2002)
(ROBERT DEUTSCH, USA TODAY)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Texas Rangers – 1 title (2023)
(Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images)
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MLB teams ranked by their World Series championships
Washington Nationals – 1 title (2019)
(Erik Williams, Imagn Images)
It wasn’t his sharpest outing of 2026, but it wasn’t his worst, either. And more importantly than anything else that transpired on the diamond on Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium, Yamamoto finished his 28th start of the year. That means he’s now gotten through each of the last two seasons having posted all of his scheduled outings. He doesn’t expect it to be his last time accomplishing that feat, either.
“While it’s a very difficult task,” Yamamoto said. “I want to keep leveling up so that doing so becomes my absolute minimum goal going forward.”
During his pregame comments, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said: “For me, players that you gravitate towards, and that you really love to have and you can’t have enough of them, are dependable players. And Yoshinobu is very dependable. He’s probably had one or two clunkers this year, but everything outside of that has been six innings plus. Very consistent. You know what you’re going to get and when the moments get big, he certainly rises to those occasions.”
Case in point, his 2025 postseason run in which he threw two complete games for the Dodgers, including one in the Game 2 of the World Series. Then of course, was his mythological outing in Game 7 when Yamamoto threw 2⅔ scoreless innings, a day after throwing 96 pitches in Game 6, to seal back-to-back championships for LA.
“He’ll never say it outwardly, but he takes pride in being there for his teammates and knowing that he’s the best option,” Roberts said. “He’s one of the more underappreciated pitchers in all of baseball.”
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto looks during the third inning against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium.
Entering this year’s postseason, Yamamoto says that he feels similar to how he did last fall. His confidence was never really part of the equation; it was the fact that he finished the season healthy. When his condition is in a good spot, Yamamoto feels like he can prepare well enough to face whatever and whoever might be facing him in the batter’s box come October.
One of those possibilities just might be the Padres.
The divisional foes have also become a familiar face in the playoffs as well considering the two SoCal sides have squared off three times in the last three years, the most recent being the Dodgers’ comeback from down 2-1 in the best of five NLDS in which they shut out the Padres and ended their season on 24 consecutive scoreless innings.
The bad blood hasn’t been lost on either team or fanbase, as seen by the thunderous boos Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. routinely receive by the Dodger Stadium faithful as the possibility of yet another meeting in October loomed in the background.
“It’s in there,” Roberts said. “Looking at the five other teams that potentially we could play, and these guys are one of them. Certainly, we’re playing them recently, we’re pretty familiar with these guys. Gathering information on (Robbie) Ray and their guys in the pen, (Michael) King yesterday and we’ll see (Nick) Pivetta tomorrow, so certainly.”
When assessing his entire 2026, Yamamoto naturally knows there are parts of his game that he needs to adjust but maintained that his feel for the ball has been in a good spot throughout the second half of the season. He feels he’s grown as his third season in the big leagues has unfolded, he’s in shape, and he’ll be ready to help the Dodgers on their quest for a historic World Series three-peat.
“Heading into October,” Yamamoto said. “I want to prepare well and do my best so that we can be the best pitching staff possible.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Yoshinobu Yamamoto reflects on regular season, gearing up for playoffs
