n=171 near this checkpoint
Why he matters right now
Yoshinobu Yamamoto is top-10 in the majors in WHIP and ERA
He is 2nd in WHIP at 0.87, 5th in ERA at 2.53 — placements on MLB's own season boards, which rank every QUALIFIED pitcher in the sport rather than the few dozen this site tracks. Qualified is MLB's own bar, and it is the reason a part-season player with a big number is not on these boards at all.
This has been his headline for 82 straight days.
The case in 30 seconds
- 0.87 2nd in WHIP at 0.87, 5th in ERA at 2.53 on MLB's season leaderboards MLB season leaderboard (the league's own top-10 board of qualified players, not this site's roster)
- ERA 2.53 — 5th of 20 qualified pitchers on this site's tracked board snapshot pitching board — the union of MLB's top-10 pitching boards, then MLB's 1.0 IP per team game rule applied; not the league's full qualified pool
The honest caveat
The open question is workload. He is at 185 innings over 28 starts; the same rate to the end of the season means roughly 185. Velocity and innings both have to hold, and neither is guaranteed — this page reports what the measurements say, not what a medical staff knows.
Every claim above, with its source (2)
- 2nd in WHIP at 0.87, 5th in ERA at 2.53 on MLB's season leaderboards MLB season leaderboard (the league's own top-10 board of qualified players, not this site's roster)
- ERA 2.53 — 5th of 20 qualified pitchers on this site's tracked board snapshot pitching board — the union of MLB's top-10 pitching boards, then MLB's 1.0 IP per team game rule applied; not the league's full qualified pool
Other cases this page considered and did not lead with: Yoshinobu Yamamoto sits 5th in ERA among 20 qualified pitchers on this site's tracked board.
The evidence
Situational splits
| Split | IP | ERA | SO | WHIP | AVG against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| vs RHP | 83.1 | — | 86 | 0.95 | .197 |
| vs LHP | 100.1 | — | 96 | 0.82 | .169 |
| Home | 103.2 | 3.13 | 106 | 0.91 | .190 |
| Away | 81.1 | 1.77 | 76 | 0.82 | .171 |
| Day | 29.2 | 1.21 | 27 | 0.64 | .158 |
| Night | 155.1 | 2.78 | 155 | 0.91 | .186 |
2026 season, MLB Stats API. A split with no plate appearances is omitted rather than shown as zeroes.
28G
28GS
185.0IP
14-9W-L
2.53ERA
0.87WHIP
182K
8.85K/9
0SV
Strikeout chase
| Chase | Current | Pace | Needed from here | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 K | 182 | 182 | 18 K · — per team game | IMPOSSIBLE |
| 250 K | 182 | 182 | 68 K · — per team game | IMPOSSIBLE |
| 300 K | 182 | 182 | 118 K · — per team game | IMPOSSIBLE |
| 350 K | 182 | 182 | 168 K · — per team game | IMPOSSIBLE |
| 383 K | 182 | 182 | 201 K · — per team game | IMPOSSIBLE |
ERA & WHIP finish lines
| Finish | Current | Required rest-of-season | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sub-2.00 ERA | 2.53 | — | IMPOSSIBLE |
| Sub-1.75 ERA | 2.53 | — | IMPOSSIBLE |
| Sub-1.50 ERA | 2.53 | — | IMPOSSIBLE |
| Sub-1.00 WHIP | 0.87 | — | ON PACE |
| Sub-0.90 WHIP | 0.87 | — | ON PACE |
Recent game log
Derived nightly from the snapshot ledger — each row is the difference between consecutive days; multi-day rows are labeled.
| Date | Opp | Result | IP | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-23 | San Diego Padres | L 1-5 | 6.0 | 4 |
| 2026-09-15 | Cincinnati Reds | W 4-0 | 7.0 | 7 |
| 2026-09-09 | Cincinnati Reds | W 14-1 | 7.0 | 10 |
| 2026-09-01 | St. Louis Cardinals | L 8-13 | 7.0 | 8 |
| 2026-08-21 | Pittsburgh Pirates | W 5-4 | 6.1 | 9 |
| 2026-08-14 | Milwaukee Brewers | W 3-1 | 6.0 | 9 |
| 2026-08-08 | Arizona Diamondbacks | W 2-1 | 5.2 | 6 |
| 2026-08-01 | Boston Red Sox | L 2-3 | 8.0 | 3 |
| 2026-07-25 | New York Mets | W 4-3 | 6.0 | 5 |
| 2026-07-19 | New York Yankees | W 8-2 | 9.0 | 7 |
Recent highlights
▶︎
Yoshinobu Yamamoto fans 10 in dominant outing2026-10-06 · Yoshinobu Yamamoto struck out 10 over 7.0 IP
▶︎
Yoshinobu Yamamoto fans seven against the Reds2026-09-15 · Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowed one hit over 7.0 scoreless innings (7 K)
▶︎
Yoshinobu Yamamoto fans 10 in seven strong innings2026-09-09 · Yoshinobu Yamamoto struck out 10 over 7.0 IP
Lahman + Retrosheet context
How this season fits history
Chase history
Stuff watch
Splitter velocity, start by start
Every start's average against his own trailing baseline of 91.6 ± 0.52 mph. Ringed dots sit more than one standard deviation under the baseline; last start 91.64 mph (2026-09-23).
No active signals — inside one standard deviation of his own baseline. A trend report, not a diagnosis.