With most pitchers and catchers officially reporting for Spring Training, the Los Angeles Dodgers are beginning to plan who will pitch in their opening series in Tokyo, Japan.
According to Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, it’s “fair to say” that Yoshinobu Yamamoto will get the ball in the season’s first game. He also plans to use Roki Sasaki in the rotation but will evaluate how he builds up this Spring Training.
This is a highly anticipated series featuring some of the top Japanese players in the world and will be dubbed as a homecoming for Sasaki, Yamamoto, and Shoei Ohtani.
Roberts also noted that if Sasaki pitches in the Opening Series at the Tokyo Dome, he would be used as a starting pitcher. It could still be a possibility that Sasaki could throw in the exhibition games against the Hanshin Tigers or the Yomiuri Giants. The Dodgers have several candidates who could start in Japan, including Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, and Clayton Kershaw.
As for Yamamoto, he would be making his first career Opening Day start. In his first season with the Dodgers, Yamamoto posted a 7-2 record, with a 3.00 ERA in 18 starts, striking out 105 batters and walking 28 over 90 innings. In four starts in the postseason, he would go 2-0 with a 3.86 ERA, collecting 15 strikeouts in 18.2 innings. He would also be the winning pitcher when the Dodgers defeated the New York Yankees in the 2024 World Series.
The Dodgers will face off against the Chicago Cubs on March 18-19 at the Tokyo Dome in Japan. In addition to the Opening Series, on March 15, the Dodgers will face the Yomiuri Giants in an exhibition matchup. Then, on March 16, the Dodgers will face the Hanshin Tigers as they gear up for Opening Day at the Tokyo Dome.
On the other side of the match-up, when Cubs manager Craig Counsell was asked about Shota Imanaga, the southpaw, taking the mound in Japan, he smiled and said, “I don’t think I have a choice.”
World Baseball Network will have coverage leading up to this historic series.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto / Roki Sasaki (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
