TOKYO -- First baseman Freddie Freeman was a late scratch from the Dodgers' Opening Day lineup due to left rib discomfort, the team announced.
Freeman played through a rib injury last postseason, although he previously said that ailment got better with rest. It is unclear if this injury is related to the previous one. The right ankle injury that Freeman played through was a larger topic of conversation at the time, as he was clearly hampered in the first two rounds of the postseason.
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But he got an extended opportunity to rest his ankle after the NL Championship Series, and beginning with Game 1 of the World Series -- when Freeman made history with a walk-off grand slam -- the 35-year-old first baseman looked much better physically. He went on to go 6-for-20 with four homers in the Fall Classic and earned World Series MVP honors.
When Freeman's ankle still wasn't feeling great in late November, he opted to undergo surgery, which consisted of debridement and the removal of loose bodies. Freeman was limited entering Spring Training as a result, but he was able to make it into nine Cactus League games, including four in a row to close out the spring slate.
Freeman played in both of the Dodgers' Tokyo Dome exhibition games against the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers. He played first base in those games and got six at-bats between the two games.