The Dodgers beat the Cubs in Game 1 of the Tokyo Series on Tuesday, as Ohtani delivered two hits and two runs scored.
The Los Angeles Dodgers opened up the 2025 regular season with a 4-1 win over the Chicago Cubs in Game 1 of the Toyko Series in Japan.
The Cubs took an early 1-0 lead but the Dodgers got to the Cubs bullpen, scoring three runs in the fifth inning and one run in the ninth to win.
The Dodgers are now 1-0 as they start their 2024 title defense.
Los Angeles grinded out seven hits in the win, including getting two from reigning National League MVP Shohei Ohtani. He singled and doubled, scoring two runs.
With that performance, he made some unique Japanese baseball history, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com:
Shohei Ohtani is the first Japanese-born player to score 2+ runs in regular-season MLB game at the Tokyo Dome
This was Ohtani’s first major league game in his home country since making his major league debut back in 2018. It was also a homecoming for Dodgers’ pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who earned the win after tossing 5.0 innings. He allowed one earned run on three hits while striking out four.
This was Ohtani’s first major league game in his home country since making his major league debut back in 2018. It was also a homecoming for Dodgers’ pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who earned the win after tossing 5.0 innings. He allowed one earned run on three hits while striking out four.
Ohtani is coming off a year full of historic accomplishments, as he hit 54 homers and stole 59 bases to become the first member of the 50/50 club. He’s already a three-time MVP and is one of only two players to win the MVP award in both leagues, joining Frank Robinson.
Despite being the proverbial middle child, to “big brother” Ohtani and little brother Roki Sasaki, Yamamoto’s three-pitch mix of fastball, curveball and splitter kept the Cubs hitters off-balance all night long. His only blemish was an RBI double to Miguel Amaya in the bottom of the second.
In a mirror opposite performance from his first start of the 2024 season, Yamamoto allowed just one run on three hits with four strikeouts in five innings. He seized the opportunity in his home country and earned the win over his fellow countryman Shota Imanaga in the first all-Japanese Opening Day starting pitching matchup in MLB history.
Both teams will play again tomorrow, but the memories of this game will last a lifetime, and for the 42,635 fans in attendance at Tokyo Dome, they will remember it for years to come.
Former Japanese ace Roki Sasaki will make his major league debut in Wednesday’s game, which kicks off at 6:10 a.m. ET.
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