In the opening game of the 2025 MLB season on Tuesday, the Los Angeles Dodgers demonstrated just how stacked they are in pursuit of their second consecutive World Series title, beating the Cubs 4-1 at the Tokyo Dome.
After the Cubs took an early lead in the second inning, the Dodgers’ offense got going in the fifth and never looked back. Japanese star Shohei Ohtani went 2-for-5 and scored two of the Dodgers’ runs.
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The starting pitchers did their jobs in their home country, with Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto going five innings, striking out four and allowing one run. Cubs lefty Shota Imanaga didn’t allow a hit but issued four walks against two strikeouts in four innings.
The Cubs mustered only three hits against Dodgers pitching, all of them in the second and third innings. Dodgers relievers took the baton from Yamamoto and kept rolling, with Tanner Scott getting his first Dodgers save with a 1-2-3 ninth.
Cubs relievers didn’t have the same luck, with Ben Brown surrendering three runs in the fifth after a walk to Andy Pages, hits from Shohei Ohtani and Tommy Edman, and an error by second baseman Jon Berti. Will Smith tacked on another run before Brown struck out Max Muncy to end the threat.
In the ninth, Ohtani led off with a double, reached third on an Edman groundout and scored on a Teoscar Hernández single to give the Dodgers some insurance.
Before the game, Freddie Freeman was scratched from the lineup due to rib discomfort. Mookie Betts did not play because of an illness. Freeman said after the game that he felt discomfort during batting practice, but that there’s a “75 percent chance” that he’s back Wednesday.
The teams will play again at the same time (6:10 a.m. ET) Wednesday, with the Dodgers’ newest Japanese addition, Roki Sasaki, making his MLB debut against Cubs starter Justin Steele.
Fantasy baseball takeaways
The Cubs didn’t put up much of a fight in this one — Yoshi Yamamoto threw 72 pitches in five innings, while the Dodgers’ bullpen made mincemeat out of the Chicago lineup — but it probably hurt fantasy managers to see new Cub Kyle Tucker put up a big fat zero across the board nonetheless. Better days are ahead (or rather, better series). Cubs starter Shota Imanaga, however, matched his countryman in Dodger Blue well, throwing four innings of scoreless ball (he did allow four walks but escaped unscathed). Imanaga looks like a solid choice for drafters who’d rather wait until the fifth and sixth rounds to address pitching.
On the other side of the box score, Shohei Ohtani looked every bit of the consensus No. 1 pick, going 2-for-5 with his first runs of the season. The heart of the Dodgers’ order — sans Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts — all delivered RBI. Something to monitor is Michael Conforto’s place in the lineup; he batted seventh Tuesday and delivered a double. He has been a popular late-round sleeper candidate this draft season.
Back to that Dodgers bullpen. Los Angeles possesses an embarrassment of riches out of the ‘pen, but it was lefty Tanner Scott who got the first save of 2025. Sure, the Dodgers were up by three runs — would Scott have gotten the ball if they were up by only one? — and the team has a plethora of seasoned late-game options, but we have to accept what we see on the field: Tanner Scott should be the first Dodgers reliever drafted in 2025.
Catch up on how the game unfolded Tuesday in Tokyo:
LIVE COVERAGE IS OVER28 updates
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 8:50 AM EDT
And that’ll do it: The Dodgers start their title defense with a win over the Cubs
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 8:46 AM EDT
Tanner Scott makes his Dodgers debut
Can the Cubs mount a late comeback?
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 8:36 AM EDT
Dodgers tack on a run in the 9th
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 8:31 AM EDT
End of 8th inning: Dodgers 3, Cubs 1
The Dodgers just keep rolling, and the Cubs haven’t had a hit since Ian Happ led off the third inning with a single.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 8:18 AM EDT
The Cubs’ offense has gone cold as the game has progressed, with Dodgers relievers Anthony Banda and Ben Casparius picking up where Yoshinobo Yamamoto left off with two more scoreless innings. Dave Roberts has no shortage of high-end options to turn to for the final two frames. Might we see the Dodgers debuts of Kirby Yates and/or Tanner Scott?
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 8:11 AM EDT
End of 7th inning: Dodgers 3, Cubs 1
The Dodgers worked a walk in the top of the seventh, but otherwise went down quietly, as did the Cubs in the bottom of the inning. Reliever Eli Morgan replaced Ben Brown for the Cubs, and Ben Casparius replaced Anthony Banda for the Dodgers.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:58 AM EDT
Who doesn’t love a good sushi race?
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:54 AM EDT
End of 6th inning: Dodgers 3, Cubs 1
The Dodgers threatened again in the top of the sixth, but Ben Brown struck out Shohei Ohtani to end the inning. The Cubs went down in order against Dodgers reliever Anthony Banda.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:51 AM EDT
Anthony Banda takes over for the Dodgers
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:38 AM EDT
End of 5th inning: Dodgers 3, Cubs 1
The Cubs went down in order in the bottom of the fifth, and the Dodgers will cruise into the sixth with a two-run lead.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:33 AM EDT
The Dodgers were clearly happy to see Imanaga leave the game, as they immediately produced a rally against reliever Ben Brown in the top of the fifth inning. After being no-hit by Imanaga through four innings, L.A. collects three hits in the frame and benefits from a Jon Berti throwing error to seize a 3-1 lead. Yamamoto is at 63 pitches heading to the bottom of the fifth — we’ll see how long he remains in the game before Dave Roberts turns it over to the loaded Dodgers bullpen.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:30 AM EDT
The Dodgers have arrived
Tommy Edman drove in Pages with a single, and Ohtani scored on a Teoscar Hernández groundout and throwing error by Cubs second baseman Jon Berti. A Will Smith single then scored Hernández for a 3-1 Dodgers lead.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:27 AM EDT
Shohei Ohtani picks up the Dodgers’ first hit
Cubs reliever Ben Brown walked Andy Pages before giving up a hit to Shohei Ohtani.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:24 AM EDT
Shota Imanaga is done after four innings and just 69 pitches. The Japanese southpaw didn’t allow a single hit to the Dodgers in his homecoming start, but he walked four batters, more free passes than he gave away in any start last year. Seems like Cubs skipper Craig Counsell didn’t want his starter facing the potent Dodgers lineup a third time through, especially when Imanaga didn’t have his best control.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:19 AM EDT
End of 4th inning: Cubs 1, Dodgers 0
In the top of the inning, the Dodgers worked two walks off Shota Imanaga, but the Cubs were able to escape unscathed. The Dodgers’ offense, meanwhile, went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the frame. Ben Brown is replacing Imanaga for the fifth inning.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 7:02 AM EDT
End of 3rd inning: Cubs 1, Dodgers
The Dodgers offense went down in order in the top of the inning, while the Cubs picked up another hit via Ian Happ. But they weren’t able to capitalize this time, and the score is still 1-0 Chicago.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 6:45 AM EDT
End of 2nd inning: Cubs 1, Dodgers 0
Cubs take an early lead on an RBI double to the right-center-field gap from catcher Miguel Amaya. Having signed as a 16-year-old out of Panama in 2015, the now-26-year-old Amaya is one of the longest-tenured members of the Cubs organization, and he’s finally getting his chance to be the every-day backstop. Catcher has been a weak spot for the Cubs since the departure of Willson Contreras in free agency, so Amaya’s development is an important thing to monitor this season.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 6:44 AM EDT
Cubs get on the board first!
Dansby Swanson got the first hit of the game, and Miguel Amaya brought him home with a double to center field.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 6:36 AM EDT
Shota Imanaga gets out of trouble in the 2nd
The Cubs’ starter walked Will Smith and Max Muncy to lead off the inning but was able to get the next three Dodgers batters to fly out.
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Tue, March 18, 2025 at 6:25 AM EDT
End of 1st inning: Cubs 0, Dodgers 0
Ian Happ worked a leadoff walk against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but the Cubs couldn’t capitalize any further.
