Yoshinobu Yamamoto says his desire to win led him to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Yamamoto says winning was even more important than joining Shohei Ohtani.

"I wouldn't say he was the sole reason in deciding to come here, and if he went somewhere else, I probably would have still ended up in L.A," he said through his interpreter. "Winning now and winning into the future was probably the most important thing in making this decision."

Yamamoto, 25, donned a No. 18 jersey as the Dodgers introduced their latest star.

The pitcher signed a 12-year, $325 million deal with Los Angeles after being swayed by the team's plan to keep winning. He expressed appreciation that Ohtani structured his 10-year, $700 million deal in a way that allowed the Dodgers to pursue other players such as Yamamoto.

"Through my talks with the front office, it was really clear that they wanted to win," Yamamoto said. "On top of that, the fact that Shohei was doing that also signaled that it wasn't just the front office, it was also the players that bought into this winning atmosphere. That really resonated with me."