Jordan Yamamoto (born May 11, 1996) is an American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

and

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

Early life

Yamamoto was born on

Oahu Oahu () (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering place#Island of Oʻahu as The Gathering Place, Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over t ...

to Larry, a diesel mechanic, and Candice Yamamoto, the vice president of a

credit union A credit union, a type of financial institution similar to a commercial bank, is a member-owned nonprofit organization, nonprofit financial cooperative. Credit unions generally provide services to members similar to retail banks, including depo ...

. He is of half

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

descent as well as

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

and

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

ancestry. He has two sisters. Yamamoto attended

Saint Louis School Saint Louis School, located in the neighborhood of Kaimuki in Honolulu, Hawaii, is a historic Roman Catholic college preparatory school for boys. It was founded in 1846 to serve Catholics in the former Kingdom of Hawaii. Located within the Roman ...

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. Per Yamamoto, he first caught the attention of

scouts Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking ...

when they came to the ballpark to watch his teammate

Kodi Medeiros Kodi Mitsugi-Kaiana Medeiros (born May 25, 1996) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the first round of the 2014 Major League Baseball draft, but would never play in Major League Basebal ...

pitch. In the summer before his senior year, he committed to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

on a full scholarship over competing offers from

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

and Loyola Marymount. Yamamoto's

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. "Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thro ...

topped out at in the state tournament in his senior year.

Professional career

Milwaukee Brewers

The Milwaukee Brewers selected him in the 12th round of the 2014 MLB draft, and he signed with Milwaukee rather than attend Arizona. After signing, Milwaukee assigned Yamamoto to the AZL Brewers where he went 0-1 with a 4.57 ERA in 21.2 innings. In 2015, he pitched for the

Helena Brewers The Helena Brewers were a Minor League Baseball team in the Pioneer League located in Helena, Montana, from 1978 to 2018. The team played their home games at Kindrick Legion Field, which was built in 1939. They were affiliated with the Milwauke ...

where he pitched to a 1-6 record and 7.84 ERA in 14 games (11 starts). Yamamoto played for the

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Grand Chute, Wisconsin, a town on the outskirts of Appleton in the Fox Cities, and are na ...

in 2016, posting a 7-8 record and 3.82 ERA, and the

Carolina Mudcats The Carolina Mudcats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Zebulon, North Carolina, a suburb of Raleigh, and play their home games at Five County Stadium. ...

in 2017 where he pitched to a 9-4 record and 2.51 ERA in 22 games (18 starts).

Miami Marlins

On January 25, 2018, the Brewers traded Yamamoto, Isan Díaz,

Lewis Brinson Lewis Lamont Brinson (born May 8, 1994) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Miami Marlins ...

, and Monte Harrison to the

for

Christian Yelich Christian Stephen Yelich (born December 5, 1991) is an American professional baseball left fielder for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Miami Marlins. The Marlins selected Yelich in the first r ...

. He was a non-roster invitee to 2018 spring training, and spent the 2018 season with the

Jupiter Hammerheads The Jupiter Hammerheads are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in the town of Jupiter, Florida, Jupiter in Palm Beach County, Florida, and play their home game ...

of the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

and the

Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Jacksonville, Florida, and are named for shrimp caught in the area. The team pla ...

of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

Southern League. In seven starts for Jupiter, he was 4-1 with a 1.55 ERA, and in three starts for Jacksonville he went 1-0 with a 2.12 ERA. After the season, he pitched for the

Salt River Rafters The Salt River Rafters are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick near Scottsdale, Arizona. The ballpark is also the spring training facility o ...

in the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fill ...

. The Marlins added Yamamoto to their 40-man roster after the 2018 season. He returned to Jacksonville to begin the 2019 season. On June 12, 2019, Yamamoto was called up to the major leagues for the first time following an injury to pitcher

José Ureña José Miguel Ureña Rodriguez (born September 12, 1991) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played MLB for the Miami Marlins, Detroit Tigers, and Milwaukee ...

. He pitched seven shutout innings with five strikeouts and earned the win as the Marlins defeated the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

9–0. In his next appearance, which was against the Cardinals again, he pitched another seven shutout innings with seven strikeouts in the 6–0 victory. Yamamoto set a franchise record with 14 scoreless innings to start his career. Yamamoto pitched in 4 games for the club in 2020, notching a 18.26 ERA with 13 strikeouts in 11.1 innings pitched. On January 28, 2021, Yamamoto was designated for assignment by the Marlins following the signing of

Anthony Bass Anthony Edward Bass (born November 1, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the San Diego Padres, Houston Astros, Texas Rangers, Chica ...

New York Mets

On February 1, 2021, Yamamoto was traded to the

in exchange for Federico Polanco. On May 25, Yamamoto was placed on the 60-day injured list with right shoulder soreness. On April 5, 2022, Yamamoto was designated for assignment to create room on the roster for Chasen Shreve whose contract was selected. He cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A on April 10, He elected free agency on November 10, 2022.

Los Angeles Dodgers

On January 23, 2023, Yamamoto signed a minor league contract with the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

. On March 13, Yamamoto announced his retirement from professional baseball.

Post-playing career

On July 10, 2023, Yamamoto became the head coach of the

William T. Dwyer High School William T. Dwyer High School is a Public school (government funded), public high school for grades 9–12 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, United States. The school was named for William T. Dwyer, former vice president of Pratt & Whitney's Governm ...

(Palm Beach Gardens, Florida) baseball team.

Personal life

Yamamoto has tattoos "all over his body" which "honor his parents, two sisters and his homeland." During a 2019 start, Yamamoto wrote a message on his hat in support of the

Thirty Meter Telescope protests The Thirty Meter Telescope protests are a series of protests and demonstrations that began on the Island of Hawaii over the choosing of Mauna Kea for the site location of the Thirty Meter Telescope. Mauna Kea is the most sacred dormant volcano ...

. He also took to

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

to voice his support. In October 2019, Yamamoto became engaged to Madison Ahearn. They married in December 2020. As a minor league baseball player, Yamamoto took up haircutting as a hobby. He would offer teammates free haircuts to practice his skills and help them save money.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yamamoto, Jordan 1996 births Living people American baseball players of Filipino descent American baseball players of Japanese descent Arizona League Brewers players Baseball players from Hawaii Binghamton Rumble Ponies players Brooklyn Cyclones players Carolina Mudcats players Florida Complex League Mets players Gulf Coast Marlins players Hawaii people of Filipino descent Hawaii people of Japanese descent Helena Brewers players Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp players Jupiter Hammerheads players Major League Baseball pitchers Miami Marlins players New York Mets players Sportspeople from Honolulu County, Hawaii Saint Louis School alumni Salt River Rafters players Syracuse Mets players Wisconsin Timber Rattlers players