December 2023 was quite an ominous month for the Los Angeles Dodgers. While the Dodgers picked Shohei Ohtani on a world record $700 million contract, it overshadowed another massive move the Dodgers had made in the same month. On December 27th, pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto joined the Dodgers on a 12-year, $325 million deal from the Japanese outfit Orix Buffaloes. The reactions to this deal were sharply divided. Astros legend, Josh Reddick, wasn’t a fan of this deal, and his remark from 2023 criticising this move has gone viral now, as the Dodgers are fighting it out in the World Series.

“How do you give a guy $325 million without ever throwing a pitch in MLB?” Reddick wrote on December 22, 2023. Safe to say this remark has not gone down well with fans in hindsight.

Yamamoto’s dominance on the mound has never wavered since he signed that lucrative contract with the Dodgers. This Saturday, he threw his second complete game of these playoffs. Yamamoto entered Saturday’s game at Rogers Centre with a 1.83 ERA over 19.2 postseason innings in 2025. He struck out eight and allowed only one run over nine dominant innings. The right-hander retired 12 straight batters, steadily outshining Blue Jays’ starter Kevin Gausman.

Yoshi kept Toronto’s lineup on edge with his sharp mix of pitches, relying heavily on his devastating four-seamer early and often. The Dodgers eventually lived up to expectations after Game 1’s meltdown, beating the Blue Jays 5-1 and leveling the series at 1-1.

Throughout two seasons, Yoshinobu Yamamoto has been worth every penny. So when he delivered another impressive outing, it was only natural for Dodger fans to turn their attention back to Josh Reddick.

Dodgers fan trolling Josh Reddick over his 2023 statement on Yoshinobu Yamamoto

Some fans implied that Josh Reddick avoids his phone on Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s dominant outings to dodge the backlash. “Bro turns his phone off on days like this, doesn’t he 😂?”  Yamamoto is having a postseason to remember. After the Dodgers ace tossed a nine-inning gem in the NLCS earlier this month, he followed it up on Saturday night with yet another complete-game effort. He powered the Dodgers to a 5–1 win over the Blue Jays in Game 2 of the World Series.

Not once but time and again, he’s lived up to the expectations that came with his $325 million contract. “I think he just showed you why he’s worth $325 million.” With his world-class splitter and other breaking balls on point, Yoshi kept some of the AL’s best hitters off balance and weakly hitting the ball. Yamamoto has rapidly proven he’s one of MLB’s premier big-game players, and nowhere is that clearer than in the playoffs.

Another fan noted, “You’re only salty bc it’s the Dodgers, cheater boy.” For the record, Reddick himself is a former Dodger. He came over to the team in 2016 along with Rich Hill from the Oakland Athletics. Fans think he’s bitter about Yamamoto because Reddick didn’t really have a huge impact on the Dodgers. He then left as a free agent, and he signed with the Houston Astros on a multi-year deal. Fans clearly didn’t take it well. “Reddick being a clown per usual.”

Accusations of a cheating scandal only kept piling up. “You cheated and couldn’t even hit; he’s $325 M richer than you… Cry cheater.” A fan quipped. The Astros were formally accused of and found guilty of sign-stealing during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. And to date, the fans criticize all the current or former Astros players who were involved in the scandal.