Three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani will begin his eighth Major League Baseball season on home soil next week following a historic 50-home run, 50-stolen base campaign for the Los Angeles Dodgers last year.

The World Series champions are scheduled to play the Chicago Cubs in the first two games of the 2025 MLB season at Tokyo Dome on Tuesday and Wednesday, with a total of five Japanese players featuring in the series.

Ohtani is expected to return to the mound at some point this year, but the Dodgers are clearly taking a cautious approach to his return as a two-way player following offseason shoulder surgery on his non-throwing arm.

Combined photo shows the Los Angeles Dodgers’ (from L) Roki Sasaki, Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto playing in a spring training game against the Cincinnati Reds on March 4, 2025, in Glendale, Arizona. (Kyodo)

With the Dodgers having reinforced their starting rotation by signing two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell and Japanese sensation Roki Sasaki, Ohtani will initially concentrate on hitting, likely in the leadoff spot.

After successful rookie seasons in 2024, Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga are set to make history as the first Japanese pitchers to go head-to-head as MLB Opening Day starters.

Sasaki, widely considered one of the most talented young pitchers in the world, got the nod from manager Dave Roberts for his major league debut in Game 2 in Tokyo after he held the Cleveland Guardians scoreless over four innings Tuesday.

The 23-year-old former Lotte Marines right-hander did not allow a run in seven innings over two spring training outings, giving up just three hits and striking out seven.

In Japan, Sasaki threw a perfect game against the Orix Buffaloes on April 10, 2022, striking out 19 batters. In his next start a week later, Sasaki threw eight perfect innings against the Nippon Ham Fighters before being replaced by a reliever.

Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki (L) and pitcher Shota Imanaga arrive at Tokyo’s Haneda airport in the early hours of March 13, 2025, ahead of the Major League Baseball season-opening series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. (Pool photo)(Kyodo)

Sasaki’s earlier-than-expected departure to the majors drew a mixed response from Japanese baseball fans. Some said he should have stayed longer with the Marines to repay the club for treating him favorably throughout his frequent injury spells.

Sasaki had a 29-15 career record with a 2.10 ERA between 2021 and 2024. Last year, he posted a career-high 10 wins against five losses with a 2.35 ERA in 18 games.

Yamamoto and Sasaki will pitch against a Cubs lineup featuring the likes of Ian Happ, Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki, while Imanaga faces the Dodgers’ MVP trio of Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman.

The Dodgers are starting a regular season abroad for the second consecutive year after the 2024 opening series against the San Diego Padres in Seoul, where Ohtani’s then interpreter Ippei Mizuhara was fired amid revelations of illegal gambling.

Prior to the two-game series, the Dodgers and Cubs will play exhibition games against the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers, two of Nippon Professional Baseball’s most popular teams, on Saturday and Sunday.

Fans gather at Tokyo’s Haneda airport on March 13, 2025, ahead of the scheduled arrival of Los Angeles Dodgers players for Major League Baseball’s season-opening Tokyo Series against the Chicago Cubs at Tokyo Dome. (Kyodo)

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