Yamamoto thought San Francisco was ‘lovely’ earlier than selecting Dodgers

New Los Angeles Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto is not among the many MLB gamers with a unfavourable notion of San Francisco.

Following Yamamoto’s introductory Dodgers press convention on Wednesday, his agent Joel Wolfe — who additionally represents Brandon Crawford — spoke to reporters after the Giants’ pursuit of the prized Japanese pitcher [h/t The Los Angeles Times’ Dylan Hernandez].

Yamamoto’s emotions about San Francisco come within the wake of former Giants catcher Buster Posey hinting on the metropolis’s popularity hurting the staff as they attempt to signal marquee free brokers.

Whereas Yamamoto appreciated San Francisco, he in the end signed a 12-year, $325 million contract with the the Dodgers, the most important deal for a pitcher in MLB historical past.

Posey’s feedback got here after the Giants missed out on Shohei Ohtani, who additionally signed with the Dodgers, regardless of San Francisco providing a virtually equivalent 10-year, $700 million contract containing principally deferred cash.

“One thing I feel is noteworthy, one thing that sadly retains popping up from gamers and even the gamers’ wives is there’s a little bit of an uneasiness with the town itself, so far as the state of the town, with crime, with medication,” Posey informed The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly on Dec. 12. “Whether or not that’s all utterly honest or not, notion is actuality. It’s a irritating cycle, I feel, and never simply with baseball. Baseball is secondary to life and the necessary issues in life. However so far as a free-agent pursuit goes, I’ve seen that it does have an effect on issues.”

Since Posey’s feedback, a number of distinguished figures, together with new Giants supervisor Bob Melvin, Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr and MLB agent Scott Boras have refuted the premise that San Francisco is an undesirable vacation spot.

“Without end, gamers have needed to come back to San Francisco,” Melvin stated to The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami. “It’s an excellent, nice metropolis. I feel massive cities are having the identical varieties of issues. And on the finish of the day, we wish guys that wish to be right here. So, we are able to’t actually have an effect on how individuals really feel about (the town). 

“The extra guys that find yourself coming right here and now we have success, the extra guys which are going to wish to be right here. That’s the way in which I take a look at it.”

Kerr, who has known as the Bay Space house for the final 10 seasons as coach of the Warriors, acknowledged that the numerous others of his gamers have expressed the alternative viewpoint of what Posey described.

“It is an attention-grabbing dynamic,” Kerr stated on 95.7 The Recreation’s “Willard and Dibs” present on Dec. 15. “What I’ve discovered, we’ve not actually had anyone specific that, however what I’ve heard from gamers is once they arrive is their wives, vital others are shocked at what an excellent place it’s. I’ve heard that a number of instances, like ‘Oh, this metropolis is definitely nice, this can be a great spot to dwell.’ Issues that we all know, proper?

“These of us that dwell right here perceive this can be a great place to dwell. However the popularity and a number of the political fallout of all the pieces that we expertise nowadays in America such that San Francisco is … you activate ‘Fox Information,’ it is the middle of armageddon. And we definitely have our issues like each different metropolis does, however that is an unbelievable place to play and an unbelievable place to dwell and our gamers and their vital others specific that on a regular basis.

“It is powerful, it is powerful on the town that now we have to cope with his popularity, however once more, to me, it is extra simply political B.S. than actuality.”

Boras, who simply helped 25-year-old Korean outfielder Jung Hoo Lee signal a six-year, $113 million contract with the Giants earlier in December, deemed the criticism San Francisco receives as “unfair.”

“Gamers speak about whether or not possession is prepared to spend to win,” Boras informed the San Francisco Chronicle’s John Shea after Lee’s introductory press convention. “Will they pay me my worth? What have they got within the minor leagues that can make them a constant winner? They’re targeted on baseball. There are points together with homelessness close to the ballpark in San Diego, in downtown L.A.

“To determine that solely with San Francisco is admittedly unfair. In any of the main cities, we’ve received points. Chicago, New York, wherever. The gamers’ main focus is the construction of the group and profitable and competing. The largest challenge the Giants have is the truth that the Dodgers are getting higher. Gamers wish to know if they arrive right here, will they have the ability to compete with the Dodgers? And now Arizona. That’s the true main query that San Francisco has to reply.”

The Giants misplaced out to the Dodgers on Yamamato, however it’s clear by Wolfe’s feedback that the pitcher’s determination had nothing to do with any attainable apprehension about coming to San Francisco.

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