Dodgers' Yoshinobu Yamamoto Likely to Start Season Opener vs. Imanaga, Cubs in Japan

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto is in line to start his team’s 2025 regular season on Tuesday, March 18, when L.A. plays the Chicago Cubs in Tokyo.

“I think it's fair to say that Yamamoto will pitch that first one,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Wednesday (h/t David Brandt of the Associated Press).

That will create a showdown of two Japanese star pitchers with Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga already confirmed as the opposing starter.

The 26-year-old Yamamato signed with the defending World Series champions on a 12-year, $325 million contract in December 2023.

He went 7-2 with a 3.00 ERA (1.11 WHIP) and 105 strikeouts in 18 regular-season starts. He missed two months due to a strained rotator cuff in his right shoulder but returned in mid-September.

Yamamato struggled in his first playoff start (3 IP, 5 ER) but fared much better in his final three, posting a 1.72 ERA. L.A. notably won all four of his postseason appearances.

Roberts also noted the Dodgers plan to use Japanese star pitcher Roki Sasaki, who joined L.A. in January.

“Then with Roki — like I said the plan is for him to pitch there,” Roberts said. “We'll kind of figure out when. A lot is contingent on the unknown, how he responds to spring training and his buildup.”

The Dodgers and Cubs will play a two-game Tokyo Series with the Cubs, with the second game occurring on March 19. That looks like the landing spot for Sasaki, although nothing is set in stone.

“Everything’s on the table, but I think it’s fair to say it would be to pitch in the second game of the season,” Roberts said. “But if it doesn’t line up, then it doesn’t line up.”

This marks the second straight year the Dodgers are opening the season overseas. Last season, the Dodgers and San Diego Padres split a pair of games in Seoul, South Korea to kick off the 2024 campaign.