How might the Dodgers' Opening Day roster look?

LOS ANGELES -- The new season brings even loftier expectations for the Dodgers, who enter 2025 seeking to become the first team in more than two decades to win back-to-back World Series titles.

Los Angeles did its fair share of retooling while also returning the key members of the championship team. The 40-man roster is stacked, but only so many players can be active when the Dodgers open their season against the Cubs in Tokyo on March 18.

Here’s an early projection of how the 26-man roster could look come Opening Day:

Catcher (2): Will Smith, Austin Barnes
Expect the Dodgers to run back this dependable duo behind the plate. Later on, it would not be surprising to see Dalton Rushing -- MLB Pipeline's No. 30 overall prospect -- get a chance to stick with the big league club. While the priority is for Rushing to develop as a catcher, he has also gotten reps at first base and left field.

First baseman (1): Freddie Freeman
Although Freeman expects to miss some Cactus League action as he rehabs from right ankle surgery, he thinks he should be ready in time for Opening Day. The Dodgers’ star first baseman missed 15 games in 2024 due to injury and the health of his youngest son, but had appeared in at least 158 games in each of the previous five full seasons.

Second baseman (1): Hyeseong Kim
When the Dodgers signed Kim, he was initially expected to be used in a superutility role. But since Los Angeles traded Gavin Lux to the Reds, there should be plenty of opportunity to seize the job at second base, where Kim won three Golden Glove Awards in the KBO.

Shortstop (1): Mookie Betts
Betts is slated to be the Dodgers’ Opening Day shortstop for the second year in a row -- but unlike in 2024, he had the entire offseason to prepare for the change of position. The Dodgers have several options capable of stepping in should Betts struggle making the transition, but the six-time Gold Glover in right field is determined to be elite at shortstop as well.

Third baseman (1): Max Muncy
Muncy missed more than three months with a right oblique strain in 2024, but he finished the championship run healthy and should once again be the regular at the hot corner. Muncy has started on Opening Day in six consecutive seasons (2019-21 at first base, ’22-24 at third), the longest streak among active Dodgers.

Outfielders (3): Michael Conforto, Teoscar Hernández, Andy Pages
Pages showed promise in his rookie season, especially against left-handers, and he has earned a longer look in 2025. While he's capable of playing center field, he profiles better in a corner, where he might spell Conforto in left or Hernández in right. James Outman should also be in the mix for what is essentially the fourth outfielder spot, with Tommy Edman expected to see a fair amount of time in center.

Bench/Utility (3): Tommy Edman, Miguel Rojas, Chris Taylor
Edman has been preparing to play both the infield and outfield, as usual, but will probably be needed more in center field. Rojas could potentially platoon with Kim at second base or spell other infielders as needed, and Taylor will slot back in as the team's superutility man.

Two-way player (1): Shohei Ohtani
The Dodgers expect Ohtani to have two-way player designation in 2025 despite not pitching in '24 while recovering from right elbow surgery. The reigning NL MVP, who also had left shoulder surgery in November, expects to be ready for Opening Day as a hitter and hopes to pitch sometime in May.

Starting pitchers (6): Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, Roki Sasaki, Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May
Snell and Sasaki, MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 overall prospect, are the additions to this group. There could be competition for the last spot or two in the rotation, as both Gonsolin and May have not pitched since 2023 while recovering from major injuries. Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw -- who has stated his intention to re-sign with the Dodgers -- will be in-season reinforcements.

Relief pitchers (7): Anthony Banda, Michael Kopech, Evan Phillips, Tanner Scott, Blake Treinen, Alex Vesia, Kirby Yates
The 'pen is short an arm with the Dodgers expected to use a six-man rotation, but this is a group built for high leverage. Manager Dave Roberts will have plenty of options to pitch the ninth inning, as all seven of these relievers recorded at least one save in 2024.