The first one is in the books. It was surely spectacle. The good guys came out with a 4-1 win, and this one counts. Except for the buildup and venue, this for me sure felt like a Spring Training game. Well, because it is still Spring Training.
We already knew that Mookie was not going to play in the 2-game series. Then right before the game started, Freddie Freeman was a late scratch due to left rib discomfort. He says it is day to day. He says he wanted to play, but was over-ruled. He says that the decision makers are saying he has a 75% chance to play in Game 2. Methinks that they are trying to placate him. Freddie we know you played with that injury last World Series and it did not curtail your WS MVP performance. But we are now at Game 2 of a 162 game schedule and I think most fans are willing to give up a couple of games without you in the lineup to make sure you are healthy enough to go back to back WS MVP.
With the 4 exhibition games, and Game 1 with the Cubs, the biggest fans for the Dodgers and Cubs playing in Tokyo has to be the Japanese pitchers. It is clear that the splitter is kryptonite for both the Dodgers and Cubs hitters, and likely to most MLB hitters. It appears that all Japanese pitchers throw the splitter, so I bet there will be high demand on these pitchers.
The game did not start well for the Dodgers. Cubs LHSP Shota Imanaga set the Dodgers down in order on 9 pitches. And before Yoshinobu Yamamoto could throw his first pitch, the count turned to 1-0 due to a clock violation. Ian Happ drew a walk, but Yamamoto left him stranded.
While not hitting, the Dodgers started to build up the pitch count on Imanaga with both Will Smith and Max Muncy leading off with walks in the 2nd, but nothing came across. After a 9 pitch first inning, Imanaga had a 26 pitch 2nd inning.
The Cubs scored their sole run in the 2nd. A one out Dansby Swanson single followed by the two out Miguel Amaya double. It was not a bad pitch. Out of the zone, but just not up enough for Amaya to chase. Instead he reached out and doubled to right center. Good RBI double for the 26 year old catcher.
Imanaga issued another pair of walks in the 4th to drive up the pitch count to 69, and while he did not allow a hit, Imanaga was done. 1.5 weeks from now, he probably does not come out after 69 pitches. Imanaga is a control pitcher who could not land all of his pitches for strikes. Last year his BB/9 was 1.5. In game 1, he had 4 BB in 4.0 IP. Yep, still ST for the Cubs as well.
Meanwhile, after a ground ball single off his glove leading off the 3rd, Yamamoto was unhittable. He retired the final 9 batters he faced: 6 ground outs and 3 strikeouts. Overall, Yamamoto completed 5. Innings allowing just the one run on 3 hits, 1 BB, and 4 K. He pitched an efficient 5.0 innings on 72 pitches (48 strikes – 66.7%).
One year ago, in his MLB debut in Korea, Yamamoto had his most forgettable outing of the year, maybe in his career. He got through 1.0 inning, allowed 5 runs (all earned) on 4 hits, 1 BB, and 1 HBP. He threw 43 pitches in that one inning. What a difference a year makes.
With multi-inning reliever Ben Brown on the bump, The Dodgers offense woke up in the 5th a bit. Andy Pages drew a 1 out walk, that was followed with the first LAD hit of the season, a 107.4 MPH single by Shohei Ohtani. With runners on 2nd and 3rd, Tommy Edman singled into LF to plate Pages for the Dodgers first run.
I want Tommy Edman ON MY TEAM!
Absolutely fitting that, with all the celebrity that the Dodgers have, and with the fanfare of being in Japan, Tommy Edman knocked in the 1st run of the year with a 93 MPH opposite-field single.Dude just makes "Winning Baseball Plays"…as… pic.twitter.com/b78XarZpPk
— Dodgers Daily (@dodger_daily) March 18, 2025
For me, other than the score tying RBI, Edman made another pivotal play. With Ohtani on 2nd and Edman on 1st, Tesocar Hernández hit a ground ball to 3B, Matt Shaw, who fed 2B Jon Berti for the force out. However, Edman slid into 2B, his body came up just as Berti was delivering the relay to Michael Busch at 1B. It sailed over Busch’s head for an error, allowing Ohtani to score the go ahead run, with Teo moving up to 2B on the errant throw.
Will Smith was the next batter and on a 3-2 pitch, Smith slapped a single to LF scoring Teo and a 3-1 lead.
The LAD bullpen picked up where they left off last year. Anthony Banda was the first of 4 relievers to come in and pitch no-hit baseball over the last four innings. The only batter to reach base was Jon Berti reaching on a Blake Treinen HBP.
- Anthony Banda – 1.0 IP, 1 K, 11 pitches (7 strikes).
- Ben Casparius – 1.0 IP, 1 K, 12 pitches (6 strikes)
- Blake Treinen – 1.0 IP, 1 HBP, 2 K, 16 pitches (11 strikes)
- Tanner Scott – 1.0 IP, 1 K, 10 pitches (8 strikes) – 1st save as a Dodger
While none of the LAD relievers threw too many pitches to be ruled out of Game 2, the team still has 6 other relievers available for the game.
Other observations:
Michael Conforto has a very pretty swing. I think he is going to have a very good year.
Michael Conforto tomahawks a ball for his first hit as a Dodgers, a double. pic.twitter.com/gr4mOyMYSU
— Chad Moriyama (@ChadMoriyama) March 18, 2025
Ben Casparius looks like he has a home in the LAD bullpen. He threw 3 of the top 4 highest velo pitches on the night (98.5, 98.1, 98.0). Yamamoto had the other top velo at 98.1. Wait until he gets really comfortable out there.
Cubs pitchers had the swings and misses down. Brown ha d 14, Imanaga had 12, Ryan Brasier had 4, and Eli Morgan had 3. With 11 swings and misses, Yamamoto was the only LAD pitcher with more than 3.
- Banda – 1 whiff
- Casparius – 2 whiffs
- Treinen – 3 whiffs
- Scott – 2 whiffs
Will Smith called a masterful game. Yamamoto usually throws his splitter around 24.2% of the time. In Game 1, he threw 40% splitters. Smith said after the game that the splitter was really working for him, so they stayed with it. His handling of the relievers was also outstanding.
Every batter reached base except for Kiké Hernández. Although he had the only hard hit ball off Imanaga (102.1).
Three of the four Japanese players who played in Game 1 did very well. The fans got a treat. Shohei’s two hits, Yamamoto’s 5.0 excellent IP, and Imanaga 4.0 hitless IP (but 4 walks). Only Seiya Suzuki did not perform as hoped. Although he did have three broken bats, two off Yamamoto.
In Game 2, the 5th Japanese player, Roki Sasaki, will make his MLB debut. Some believe that Roki has the best splitter in baseball. It could be a long night for the Cubs hitters if the moment of his MLB debut does not get the best of Roki.
https://www.mlb.com/gameday/dodgers-vs-cubs/2025/03/18/778563/final/summary/all
The rosters have been set and the Dodgers have 11 pitchers on the IL.
15-day IL:
· Tony Gonsolin (back tightness)
· Edgardo Henriquez (left foot fracture)
· Kyle Hurt (rehabbing Tommy John surgery)
· Clayton Kershaw (rehabbing toe surgery)
· Michael Kopech (shoulder impingement)
· Evan Phillips (rehabbing rotator cuff strain)
· Emmet Sheehan (rehabbing Tommy John surgery)
60-day IL
· Brusdar Graterol (labrum procedure)
· Michael Grove (shoulder surgery)
· River Ryan (TJ surgery)
· Gavin Stone (shoulder surgery)
Hurt, Sheehan, Kershaw figure to get 60 day IL stints if needed. The beginning date of the 60 day IL does not start over. It simply reverts to the date the player was placed on the 15 day.
I agree about Casparius. He looks like a keeper in the pen! My goodness, so many quality arms!
And that’s before Kopech, Phillips & Graterol join them!
Casparius inning was my favorite part of the game.
Unlike many of you, I did not get up at 3:00 AM to watch the game live, but watched the replay at 8:00.
Kersh spent the 3rd inning in the booth with Joe and Karros and I’ve got to say that Clayton Kershaw is the best color man I have ever heard in a broadcast booth (or from the dugout). And it isn’t even close.
He is an absolute natural. An easy conversational style and lots of really good information. Unfortunately, I seriously doubt he plans a broadcast career when his time on the mound comes to an end. What a treat to at least have him for an inning. Maybe we’ll get another inning for Game 2.
Now if he could just get the Mendoza giggle down he’d be perfect. 😛
I agree with you on how good Kershaw is as a color man. But I think you might be short-selling Mookie. He is also excellent (IMO). And unlike Kershaw, I think Mookie will get a role in a broadcast booth.
That being said, I could see Clayton do something similar to Orel, Karros, and Nomar and do some guest color commenting on a short term basis for Texas during their home games. Maybe with Fox (or whoever is left) at the World Series. He is a natural, but so is Mookie.
To be honest, I was just comparing CK to professional announcers I’ve heard (or been forced to listen to). Hadn’t even thought about Mookie in that regard. Yes, he’s also very good and does a great job as an interviewer on his podcasts, but I’ll still take Kersh as my #1.
I like your idea of having him do playoff games once he retires. That wouldn’t take him away from his family for long but would still enable him to stay close to the game for a brief period every year.
Good read.
Be sure to check the links, and the Christy Mathewson quote:
https://jballallen.com/tommy-john-japan-and-the-future/
Ironic that Berti, the former Yankee, made the big error for the Cubs.
Berti said of the Dodgers back in February, “I don’t know if I’ve ever heard World Series-winning team talk as badly as they did about the World Series loser. We were being disrespected to the point of where it felt like we didn’t belong in the World Series.”
I saw little disrespect from the players. What I saw was a ton of disrespect to the game and their team from Yankee fans. Their behavior during game 5 and afterwards was despicable. They were flipping off every fan in Dodger blue they saw. Just very unsportsmanlike behavior.
Yu Darvish is dealing with elbow inflammation.
He is almost 39, has only won 10 games or more 5 times in his entire career. Stick a fork in him, he is done.
Wakey Wakey
Its time for Dodger Baseball
No Freddie.
My Tim Horton’s coffee at 3:10am was rather tasty!
Now you know how I feel every single Dodger home game – a 3am alarm call!! (Except Sundays and a few Saturdays).
Shohei has read the script.
Roki was, well, rocky. 4 walks but some good stuff in there as well. If his Splitter isn’t landing he’s bound to struggle.
Won without him and Mookie again.
Game 2 just ended, high wire act for Vesia in the 9th, but he got the rookie Shaw to ground out to end the game with a 6-3 win for LA> Edman, who else? Ohtani and Kike with homers. Sasaki just a little nervous and wild. Walked in the Cubs first run and had issues with a lack of first pitch strikes. Knack gets the win, Vesia the save.
Craig Kimbrel signed a minor league deal with the Braves. Patrick Corbin signed a major league deal with the Rangers who had to place Jon Gray on the IL.
Well you could tell how nervous and amped up Sasaki was, but not anything like Yamamoto’s first start last year. Nice to see he still has 100 in the tank even though it’s probably more like 97-98 on a consistent basis. It will be interesting to see how his command improves in his next start. The kid is just a future star if he can stay healthy. And he needs to continue to develop his slider and throw it more often.
He was missing by a lot with his bread-and-butter splitter. Looked to me like he did not trust his fastball. But no one was hitting it either.
Impressed with Kirby Yates, that one will be fun to watch this season.
Mr. October, damn we are so fortunate that they didn’t screw around and lose Kike.
Mookie does not make that play to end the game, in fact there are not too many MLB SS that can make that play. Rojas is a superior SS.
Had the same thought about Rojas’s play.
Doesn’t matter what we think about Betts as a SS. Until further notice, he will be your starting SS. Rojas might make that play, but he is no longer an everyday SS.
You totally miss the point.
Sasaki impressive stuff, but not an impressive outing. Probably just nerves.
Some pitchers will put all that they have on each ball. This is foolish for two reasons. In the first place, it exhausts the man physically, and when the pinch comes (high-leverage moments), he has not the strength to last it out. But second and most important, it shows the batter everything he has which is senseless. A man should always hold something in reserve, a surprise to spring when things get tight.” – Christy Mathewson from his 1912 book “Pitching in a Pinch: Baseball from the Inside.”
Show them the 101 mph fastball, then get them out on a well placed 97 mph fastball. His arm will not last pitching like this.
Go home, get healthy, and start the season 2-0 next week.
Pitching is about finesse and strategy, not just raw power.
The mark of a great pitcher is not just how hard he throws, but how well he can locate his pitches. of a great pitcher is not just how hard he throws, but how well he can locate his pitches.
Christy Mathewson
He was a wise man. Truly one of the all time greats of the game.
101. Impressive. But don’t do it. That’s for relievers going 1 inning.
This kid threw the hardest fastball ever recorded by a high school pitcher. The guy whose record he beat? Ohtani of course. Ohtani has had 2 TJ surgeries. You’ve already had arm issues. Be smart kid. Use your stuff but become a pitcher, not a thrower.
Dodgers averaging 4.5 runs a game without Mookie or Freddie. Weird schedule sees them off until they play 3 exhibition games against the Angels.
2 games up on the rest of the division!
Will the Dodgers be headed this season?
Actually, their lead is one game. Since the other teams have not played, each win is only worth 1/2 game in the standings.
Apparently, the Giants have sold a 10% stake in the team to private equity firm. The value of the franchise and its team-related holdings (real estate) are at $4.2 billion. Sounds good if you’re a Giants fan until you read that team CEO Larry Baer said the money would not be spent on players.
“This is not about a stockpile for the next Aaron Judge,” Baer told The New York Times. “This is about improvements to the ballpark, making big bets on San Francisco and the community around us.”
So basically they’re going to use the added money to enhance their real estate holdings and not the actual team or its roster. This is the difference between the Giants and the Dodgers organizations.The Dodgers have the money, and they invest it in their roster. Winning is a great business model and the Dodgers have done it well. Giants fans should be pissed at how the Giants are run not the Dodgers
Dodgers optioned Outman, Sauer and Knack to OKC. Need the roster space for Snell, Glasnow and May.
Did that need to be done now?
I think it was pre-emptive. They can still play in the freeway series. But at least now they know where they will start the season.
This is officially a super-team. Over and out.
Just some quick thoughts on the last couple of games: