Pair of exciting pitching matchups slated for Tokyo Series
Sonja Chen
@sonjamchen
Jordan Bastian
@MLBastianTOKYO -- The list of Japanese stars currently in the Majors is deep and the Dodgers and Cubs are leading the charge. Look no further than the mound at the legendary Tokyo Dome for next week’s Tokyo Series to open the 2025 season.
Three of the four starters for the two-game clash will feature arms who made the jump to the Majors from Japan. Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the Dodgers will face Shota Imanaga of the Cubs for Tuesday’s Opening Day matchup, followed by Los Angeles’ new phenom, Roki Sasaki, taking on Chicago lefty Justin Steele in Wednesday’s clash.
This series alone will double the number of Japanese-born players who have pitched in a regular-season Major League game at the Tokyo Dome; previously, only three had done it: Daisuke Matsuzaka (2008), Hideki Okajima (2008) and Yusei Kikuchi (2019).
“To Japanese baseball fans and just baseball fans across the world,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said, “this is an important series, because it highlights that baseball is a world sport. And for the Cubs to be a part of this, I think that’s special for all of us. And we take that job very seriously that baseball is on a world stage and a world platform with some great hosts.”
"In one sense, it's just two baseball games, but in the global sense … it's a big opportunity for all of us," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts added.
Here’s a breakdown of the two matchups:
Game 1
Dodgers: RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Previous Opening Day starts: None
2024 Season: 7-2, 3.00 ERA in 90 innings
Back when he was pitching in Japan, Yamamoto starred for the Orix Buffaloes, winning the Eiji Sawamura Award -- the NPB equivalent of the Cy Young Award -- in three consecutive years. Yamamoto signed with the Dodgers ahead of the 2024 season on a 12-year, $325 million contract -- the largest for a pitcher in Major League history, in terms of guaranteed dollars.
Expectations are high for Yamamoto following a solid first season in the Majors. The Dodgers saw the 26-year-old right-hander rise to the occasion last postseason, when he was one of only three healthy traditional starting pitchers the team used en route to winning the World Series. With the stuff he has and a year in the big leagues under his belt, Yamamoto could have a big year ahead of him.
Cubs: LHP Shota Imanaga
Previous Opening Day starts: None
2024 Season: 15-3, 2.91 ERA in 173 1/3 innings
Imanaga will take the stage at the Tokyo Dome following a breakout rookie showing for the Cubs last season. The left-hander quickly won over Chicago’s fans, along with his teammates, and baffled hitters with an arsenal centered around his fastball, splitter and slider. That said, Imanaga has an even deeper arsenal he can pull from when needed.
Tokyo Dome will be filled with fans who know Imanaga from his days pitching for Yokohama or for his role as the gold-medal game starter for Team Japan in the ‘23 World Baseball Classic. In his first taste of the Majors, the 31-year-old lefty made the National League All-Star team, while finishing fourth and fifth in voting for the NL Rookie of the Year and Cy Young awards.
Game 2
Dodgers: RHP Roki Sasaki
Previous Opening Day starts: None
2024 Season: 10-5, 2.35 ERA in 111 innings (in NPB)
Sasaki was one of the most highly coveted free agents this past offseason after an impressive four-year tenure with the Chiba Lotte Marines. After he was posted for MLB teams and a frenzied sweepstakes ensued, the 23-year-old right-hander chose to sign with the Dodgers, joining a loaded rotation.
Sasaki was at the center of much fascination in Dodgers camp this spring, as the baseball world got to see how his stuff played against Major League hitters for the first time. His devastating splitter -- his signature offering -- looked as good as advertised, and his impending big league debut on Wednesday may be one of the most anticipated in recent memory.
Cubs: LHP Justin Steele
Previous Opening Day starts: One (2024)
2024 Season: 5-5, 3.07 ERA in 134 2/3 innings
Steele was the Cubs’ Opening Day starter last season, but the lefty had no issue allowing Imanaga to take on that assignment this year for the Tokyo Series. The 29-year-old lefty is a homegrown arm (picked by the Cubs in the fifth round of the 2014 Draft) and has quietly emerged as one of baseball’s top lefty starters.
Steele enjoyed his own breakout in ‘23, when he was an All-Star and -- like Imanaga a year ago -- placed fifth in balloting for the NL Cy Young Award. That year, the lefty used his fastball-slider led mix to rack up 16 wins with a 3.06 ERA in 30 starts. Steele missed time due to injury last season, but posted near identical rate stats to ‘23 in multiple categories.