PHOENIX —
When the Dodgers signed Yoshinobu Yamamoto this offseason, pitching coach Mark Prior knew there would be cultural differences to bridge with the star Japanese right-hander.
It didn’t take long this spring for them to stumble upon even the most mundane of examples.
During one of their first conversations at Dodgers camp, as the team planned out Yamamoto’s schedule for the spring, Prior asked his new starter about his routine for “touch and feel” bullpen sessions — brief, low-effort throwing activities mostly meant to keep a pitcher’s delivery in-sync between more extensive full-intensity outings.