Spring Coaching is lastly over (form of) and the 2025 season kicks off overseas, very like it did final season. This time, the Dodgers and Cubs open up the season in Japan and begin up the 2025 season with a pair of Japanese arms on the mound. If you happen to haven’t heard, the Dodgers received the World Collection final season and start their journey to turn into the primary champs to repeat for the reason that 2000 Yankees accomplished a three-peat with a 4-1 sequence win over the Mets.
The Dodgers didn’t relaxation on their laurels on this offseason, however somewhat had what was primarily the dream offseason. Shedding Walker Buehler stings for principally sentimental causes, however they arguably acquired the perfect free agent starter accessible (Blake Snell), retained the most effective bats available on the market (Teoscar Hernandez), introduced in two of the perfect bullpen arms available on the market (Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates) and re-signed two franchise favorites in Clayton Kershaw and Enrique Hernandez. In addition they received the bidding for tomorrow’s starter Roki Sasaki, one of the highly-touted worldwide prospects ever. Not unhealthy, Fraudman. You may’t actually surpass “successful the World Collection”, however the Dodgers did end with their fewest wins in a non-shortened season since 2018 (solely 98, the bums) and now boast arguably the perfect pitching employees we’ve seen in fairly some time. As we speak is their first actual take a look at following a 12-8 Cactus League report. They break up two exhibition video games in Japan, as they beat the Yomiuri Giants Saturday morning and misplaced to the Hanshin Tigers Saturday evening.
The Cubs additionally break up their two exhibition video games, shedding to Hanshin and beating Yomiuri. The Cubs completed 10 video games behind the Brewers with an 83-79 report final season and didn’t make the playoffs for the fourth consecutive 12 months. They made one of many first big splashes within the offseason, buying and selling Issac Parades, Hayden Wesneski and Cam Smith to Houston for the ultimate 12 months of Kyle Tucker‘s contract. They adopted that up by buying and selling previous good friend Cody Bellinger to the Yankees for Cody Poteet and likewise added Ryan Brasier in a commerce with the Dodgers for a PTBNL. The Tucker commerce, mixed with the Brewers shedding Willy Adames, vaulted the Cubs because the favorites within the NL Central (PECOTA offers them an 81.4 % probability of successful their division, second highest solely behind the Dodgers 91.7 % probability). Final season the Cubs took 4 of six from the Dodgers, taking two of three each in Chicago and in LA. These two video games in Japan rely as house video games for the Cubs, who journey to LA April 11-13 and host the Dodgers April 22-23.
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| 3:10 A.M. | Tokyo | ||
| DH | Ohtani (L) | LF | Happ (S) |
| 2B | Edman | DH | Suzuki |
| 1B | Freeman (L) | RF | Tucker (L) |
| RF | T. Hernández | 1B | Busch (L) |
| C | Smith | 3B | Shaw |
| LF | Okay. Hernández | SS | Swanson |
| 3B | Muncy (L) | CF | Crow-Armstrong (L) |
| SS | Rojas | C | Amaya |
| CF | Pages | 2B | Berti |
| P | Yamamoto (R) | P | Imanaga (L) |
Yoshinobu Yamamoto begins the season for the Dodgers following a reasonably good rookie season. Yamamoto started his profession within the Seoul Collection, beginning the second sport in opposition to the Padres in 2024 and getting roughed up. He allowed 4 hits and 5 runs and wanted 43 pitches to finish his one and solely inning of the beginning. Happily, issues obtained higher as soon as they returned stateside as Yamamoto posted a 2.53 ERA/2.58 FIP in 17 begins post-Seoul. His season hit a snag throughout the cursed sequence in opposition to the Royals in July, when he left his begin after solely two innings with triceps soreness that may price him about three months (this coming the day earlier than Mookie Betts obtained hit on the hand and missed almost two months). Yamamoto returned in September to construct up for the postseason, and after a shaky begin he was fairly good in October. He obtained the ball in Recreation 1 of the NLDS and seemed to proceed the Dodger beginning pitching woes within the playoffs, permitting three runs within the prime of the primary in opposition to the Padres. He obtained by way of three innings and the Dodgers managed to return again in that sport. Yamamoto additionally obtained the ball in Recreation 5 and was nails, tossing 5 shutout innings in a 2-0 series-clinching victory. He allowed two runs over 4 1/3 innings within the NLCS in opposition to the Mets and took the ball in Recreation 2 of the World Collection, the place he pitched into the seventh and solely allowed one hit, a solo homer to Juan Soto. Yamamoto shut down the Cubs each instances he confronted them final season. He solely allowed one unearned run over 9 innings and allowed six hits and two walks whereas placing out 16.
Whereas Yamamoto obtained many of the offseason hype, Shota Imanaga got here out of the gate on an unimaginable run for the Cubs in his rookie season. Imanaga didn’t permit an earned run in six of his first 9 begins and posted a 0.84 ERA in that stretch. He had a pair abysmal outings (seven runs in 4 1/3 innings, 10 runs in three innings) however his ERA by no means obtained larger than 3.16 regardless of that. He made 29 begins and went no less than six innings in 20 of them, and completed the season with 174 strikeouts and solely 28 walks. The Cubs, who barely completed over .500, had been 23-6 when Imanaga took the ball and he completed fourth in Rookie of the 12 months and fifth in Cy Younger voting.
Imanaga had eight totally different pitch sorts tracked by Savant in 2024, however primarily threw his four-seamer (51.9 %) and splitter (30.6 %). He blended in a sweeper (principally in opposition to lefties, solely 7.7 % of the time general) and likewise obtained tracked throwing a change, curveball, sinker, cutter and gradual curve. His splitter was his bread-and-butter pitch, with a 43.1 % whiff price and .204 batting common/.283 slugging share in opposition to (xBA .217 and xSLG .316).
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The Dodgers are lacking a giant identify within the lineup, as Mookie Betts will miss the Japan sequence with an sickness.
Roberts mentioned Betts misplaced shut to fifteen kilos throughout his sickness. Betts has felt higher the final couple days, however staff was apprehensive he could possibly be extra inclined to a comfortable tissue damage proper now –– particularly as he transitions again to shortstop
— Jack Harris (@ByJackHarris) March 17, 2025
Miguel Rojas will get the beginning at brief and also will begin there tomorrow.
So far as who’s taking part in, the Dodgers introduced their 26-man roster for the 2 video games earlier.
The Dodgers formally introduced their Opening Day roster. pic.twitter.com/quV65Ecbjx
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) March 18, 2025
Not a ton of surprises. They didn’t have to roster the remainder of the beginning rotation, so Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell and Dustin Might are all on the exempt listing. James Outman made the roster and offers the Dodgers a lefty off the bench. They added quite a few gamers to the 15-day IL, once more none of these had been stunning. Eduardo Herniquez’s damage is formally being designated as a foot fracture, which is the one actually notable factor right here.
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For many who have been pining for it for years, you may get SNLA on streaming now.
A whole lot of you have got been asking, and it is now right here. @SportsNetLA will be bought as a standalone streaming platform, SNLA+.
It is accessible beginning in the present day, with entry by way of the MLB app and https://t.co/yuIHJ9psph.
SNLA+ is on the market for direct buy at $29.99 monthly or…
— Matthew Moreno (@Matthew__Moreno) March 17, 2025
In different information, now’s the time to subscribe to Apple TV+.
JUST IN: Apple drops the trailer for the Dodgers and Yankees World Collection documentary
#FightForGlory premieres March 28 on @AppleTV
— MLB (Bot) (@mlbbot.bsky.social) March 17, 2025 at 3:19 AM
First off in case you’re not watching Severance, what are you doing? Secondly, this premieres March 28, the evening the Dodgers will obtain their World Collection rings earlier than the second sport of the home schedule in opposition to the Tigers.
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First pitch is scheduled for 3:10 AM (why) and will probably be proven on Sportsnet LA and FOX (out of market).
