Dodgers' Japan series: A cultural phenomenon like no other
Alona Yadav | Mar 12, 2025, 17:06 IST
( Image credit : AP )
The Los Angeles Dodgers will play an international baseball series in Tokyo against the Chicago Cubs. The Dodgers' Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Roki Sasaki will attract significant attention. Tickets are highly priced. The series includes exhibition games and two regular-season contests. Players are excited for the cultural experience and team bonding opportunities.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are about to embark on what might be the most anticipated international baseball series in history. Landing in Tokyo on Wednesday morning, the defending World Series champions will face a reception comparable to Beatlemania as they showcase their trio of Japanese superstars—Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Roki Sasaki—to an adoring homeland crowd.
"The stadium doesn't hold 100 million people," Dodgers president Stan Kasten told USA TODAY Sports, "which is approximately how many Japanese people would love to see Shohei, Yoshi, and Roki. Everyone appreciates the historic significance unlike any other international adventure we've ever undertaken in baseball."
The magnitude of this cultural moment cannot be overstated. Tickets for exhibition games at the 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome start at $900, while standing-room only spots for the regular-season contests against the Chicago Cubs command at least $2,000. Ohtani, coming off MLB's first 50-50 season, has transcended sports celebrity in Japan, with building-sized billboards, ubiquitous merchandise, and dedicated fan clubs celebrating his return.
"It's going to be like traveling with the Beatles," says Dodgers infielder Max Muncy, while starter Tyler Glasnow adds, "It's going to be insane. It's going to be like Justin Bieber times 10 over there."
While the Cubs bring their own Japanese stars in Shota Imanaga and Seiya Suzuki, they can't match the star power of the Dodgers, who feature six potential future Hall of Famers alongside Ohtani. The Dodgers have already established themselves as North America's most popular team, expecting to draw more than 4 million fans at Dodger Stadium for the first time in franchise history. Now they're expanding their cultural footprint across the Pacific.
The series features perfect storylines: Yamamoto and Imanaga will become the first Japanese pitchers to face each other in an opener, with Sasaki taking the mound in Game 2. Ohtani and Suzuki are expected to serve as designated hitters for their respective teams.
For Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, whose Japanese mother and Black American father welcomed him while stationed in Okinawa, the trip holds special significance. "This is personal," Roberts said. "I remember being in Japan as a young kid and watching the Tokyo Giants play and my grandfather telling me that this is the team. Now to be playing against those guys and managing against those guys is great."
Even 36-year-old Clayton Kershaw, who will open the season on the injured list, is making the journey with his wife and four children to witness what he calls "a once-in-a-lifetime experience."
Unlike previous international series that prompted player complaints, the Japan trip has generated universal enthusiasm. After landing, the teams will immediately head to practice to combat jet lag, then play exhibition games against the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers before facing each other in two regular-season contests.
Cubs manager Craig Counsell framed the adventure perfectly: "We could go play laser tag or something like that, or, we could go to Japan and play the Dodgers. That seems like more fun."
For players on both teams, the series offers cultural immersion and team bonding ahead of the long MLB season. As Dodgers center fielder James Outman put it, "I've heard so many good things about Tokyo. I can't wait to experience it all."
The timing also provides a welcome conclusion to spring training. With blue duffel bags and equipment heading to Japan, Muncy expressed the team's readiness: "We've been here a long time already. It's starting to become like groundhog day. Guys are ready to go, and we see the light at the end of the tunnel."
"The stadium doesn't hold 100 million people," Dodgers president Stan Kasten told USA TODAY Sports, "which is approximately how many Japanese people would love to see Shohei, Yoshi, and Roki. Everyone appreciates the historic significance unlike any other international adventure we've ever undertaken in baseball."
The magnitude of this cultural moment cannot be overstated. Tickets for exhibition games at the 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome start at $900, while standing-room only spots for the regular-season contests against the Chicago Cubs command at least $2,000. Ohtani, coming off MLB's first 50-50 season, has transcended sports celebrity in Japan, with building-sized billboards, ubiquitous merchandise, and dedicated fan clubs celebrating his return.
"It's going to be like traveling with the Beatles," says Dodgers infielder Max Muncy, while starter Tyler Glasnow adds, "It's going to be insane. It's going to be like Justin Bieber times 10 over there."
While the Cubs bring their own Japanese stars in Shota Imanaga and Seiya Suzuki, they can't match the star power of the Dodgers, who feature six potential future Hall of Famers alongside Ohtani. The Dodgers have already established themselves as North America's most popular team, expecting to draw more than 4 million fans at Dodger Stadium for the first time in franchise history. Now they're expanding their cultural footprint across the Pacific.
The series features perfect storylines: Yamamoto and Imanaga will become the first Japanese pitchers to face each other in an opener, with Sasaki taking the mound in Game 2. Ohtani and Suzuki are expected to serve as designated hitters for their respective teams.
For Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, whose Japanese mother and Black American father welcomed him while stationed in Okinawa, the trip holds special significance. "This is personal," Roberts said. "I remember being in Japan as a young kid and watching the Tokyo Giants play and my grandfather telling me that this is the team. Now to be playing against those guys and managing against those guys is great."
Even 36-year-old Clayton Kershaw, who will open the season on the injured list, is making the journey with his wife and four children to witness what he calls "a once-in-a-lifetime experience."
Unlike previous international series that prompted player complaints, the Japan trip has generated universal enthusiasm. After landing, the teams will immediately head to practice to combat jet lag, then play exhibition games against the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers before facing each other in two regular-season contests.
Cubs manager Craig Counsell framed the adventure perfectly: "We could go play laser tag or something like that, or, we could go to Japan and play the Dodgers. That seems like more fun."
For players on both teams, the series offers cultural immersion and team bonding ahead of the long MLB season. As Dodgers center fielder James Outman put it, "I've heard so many good things about Tokyo. I can't wait to experience it all."
The timing also provides a welcome conclusion to spring training. With blue duffel bags and equipment heading to Japan, Muncy expressed the team's readiness: "We've been here a long time already. It's starting to become like groundhog day. Guys are ready to go, and we see the light at the end of the tunnel."