Yoshinobu Yamamoto overcomes illness, stunning weight drop to maintain Cy Young push

Welcome to the California Post’s weekly Dodgers recap, where we review the week that was, hand out very official awards and take stock of the state of the season.Yoshinobu Yamamoto (8-inning, 3-run start this week; 11-7 record, 2.76 ERA on season)There haven’t been many heroic performances during the Dodgers’ six-game losing streak.But Yamamoto’s outing against the Red Sox last Saturday was an exception.It wasn’t that he halted the Dodgers’ skid, instead taking the loss after giving up the decisive run in the eighth inning.

Or that he was particularly dominant, striking out only three batters in a performance that actually saw his ERA slightly rise from 2.72 to 2.76.But that Yamamoto was pitching at all –– much less effectively enough to complete eight innings –– was nonetheless a feat.In the days leading up to the start, the already diminutive right-hander lost roughly eight pounds after getting sick at the end of the team’s previous road trip in New York.He spent the week slowly recovering, and had his rotation turn pushed back a day (after a bullpen game on Friday) to regain some extra strength.It didn’t stop him from making his fourth eight-plus-inning start this year, which is tied with Sandy Alcantara for most in the majors.

He also remains in the thick of the Cy Young race, ranking sixth in the NL in ERA, fifth in innings pitched and second in WHIP.This week, Yamamoto stayed back in Los Angeles during the Chicago portion of the team’s road trip to keep recuperating.He rejoined them in Arizona ahead of his next scheduled start on Saturday.Shohei Ohtani (10-for-24, 3 home runs, 5 RBIs this week; .297 average, .954 OPS, 26 home runs, 70 RBIs this season)How much Ohtani’s day off from the Dodgers’ lineup last Thursday helped his knee still isn’t clear.But it certainly didn’t seem to hamper his scorching hot swing.Though the Dodgers’ two-way star has still not resumed a throwing program amid his ongoing knee injury, now more ...