Los Angeles Dodgers

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto is in line to start his team’s 2025 regular season on Tuesday, March 18, when L.A. plays the Chicago Cubs in Tokyo.

“I think it's fair to say that Yamamoto will pitch that first one,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Wednesday (h/t David Brandt of the Associated Press).

That will create a showdown of two Japanese star pitchers with Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga already confirmed as the opposing starter.

The 26-year-old Yamamato signed with the defending World Series champions on a 12-year, $325 million contract in December 2023.

He went 7-2 with a 3.00 ERA (1.11 WHIP) and 105 strikeouts in 18 regular-season starts. He missed two months due to a strained rotator cuff in his right shoulder but returned in mid-September.

Yamamato struggled in his first playoff start (3 IP, 5 ER) but fared much better in his final three, posting a 1.72 ERA. L.A. notably won all four of his postseason appearances.

Roberts also noted the Dodgers plan to use Japanese star pitcher Roki Sasaki, who joined L.A. in January.

“Then with Roki — like I said the plan is for him to pitch there,” Roberts said. “We'll kind of figure out when. A lot is contingent on the unknown, how he responds to spring training and his buildup.”

The Dodgers and Cubs will play a two-game Tokyo Series with the Cubs, with the second game occurring on March 19. That looks like the landing spot for Sasaki, although nothing is set in stone.

“Everything’s on the table, but I think it’s fair to say it would be to pitch in the second game of the season,” Roberts said. “But if it doesn’t line up, then it doesn’t line up.”

This marks the second straight year the Dodgers are opening the season overseas. Last season, the Dodgers and San Diego Padres split a pair of games in Seoul, South Korea to kick off the 2024 campaign.

Clayton Kershaw has reportedly returned to the Los Angeles Dodgers for an 18th season after the two sides agreed to a deal.

Alden González of ESPN reported Kershaw and the Dodgers have agreed to terms, pending a physical, and that the pitcher is at the team facility.

Terms of the deal have yet to be disclosed.

The Dodgers signed Kershaw to a two-year, $10 million contract in February 2024 that included performance bonuses if he hit certain thresholds. He declined his player option for 2025, but there was nothing to suggest he was going to leave the Dodgers as a free agent.

Kershaw's performance-based incentives were included because he had offseason shoulder surgery that kept him out of action until July. He made seven starts before being placed on the injured list at the end of August due to a bone spur in his left big toe.

The injury wound up keeping Kershaw sidelined for the remainder of the regular season. He was effective in his first few starts coming off the shoulder injury, posting a 2.63 ERA over 24 innings in five games from July 25 through Aug. 18.

Things fell apart for Kershaw in his next two starts with 12 hits and eight earned runs allowed in six innings before he landed on the IL.

Given the injury issues and uneven performance in 2024, there was some uncertainty about Kershaw's playing future. He told reporters when he re-signed with the team last offseason that being a pitcher who just hangs around to keep playing wasn't something that interested him.

"I've said it before, I don't want to be average. I don't want to just pitch to pitch," he said. "I want to be good. I want to contribute. I want to be a part of this and so yeah, my expectations are no concessions to just be good."

Kershaw ended any speculation about his playing future prior to Game 2 of the NLCS on Oct. 14 when he revealed he would be returning for the 2025 season.

"Obviously, I had some tough luck with my foot this year, [but] I want to make use of this [shoulder] surgery," Kershaw said. "I don't want to have surgery and then shut it down. So, I'm going to come back next year, give it a go and see how it goes."

This will be another offseason that Kershaw spends time rehabbing after surgery. He announced on Nov. 7 that he had a procedure done on his foot and knee with the goal to be "as good as can be" in 2025.

Kershaw did not announce a return timeline in his statement like he did after having his shoulder operated on last year.

While the Dodgers were waiting for Kershaw to make his decision, they were busy loading up for another run next season. Their offseason additions include Blake Snell, Roki Sasaki, Tanner Scott and brought back Teoscar Hernández.

The three-time NL Cy Young winner is one year removed from posting a 2.46 ERA in 24 starts during the 2023 campaign, so there is hope that he can be effective if injuries don't impact him when he does eventually return.

There seemed to be little doubt that if Kershaw was going to keep pitching, it would only be for the Dodgers.

Despite past rumors connecting him to the Texas Rangers because he is from Dallas, there has been nothing to suggest he wants to play for another organization besides the Dodgers.

Given Kershaw's likely low salary in 2025, the Dodgers have nothing to lose in giving a franchise icon another opportunity to prove he can be an asset in their quest to win a World Series with a still-loaded roster.

Former Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Farhan Zaidi is reportedly returning to the Dodgers' front office after his firing by the San Francisco Giants.

Zaidi will serve as a special advisor in his second stint with the team, The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya reported Monday.

Zaidi worked as the Dodgers' general manager from 2014 to 2018. He then served as president of baseball operations for the Giants from 2018 to 2024.

Dodgers owner Mark Walter, who also owns stakes in the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Sparks, PWHL and Chelsea FC, will receive assistance from Zaidi with "his other sports interests," according to Ardaya.

Ardaya and Ken Rosenthal first reported for The Athletic in December that the Dodgers were talking with Zaidi about a front office role.

In an interview with Foul Territory that month, Zaidi said it was "not important" to him to resume his former role as general manager.

"If it happens, great. I know there's so many different ways that anybody can help an organization," Zaidi said in December. "I have friends who are GMs, and the chance to be a special assistant, to be an advisor to one of them, I think not only would it be great personally, but it would be nice professionally, too."

The Dodgers developed players like Max Muncy and Chris Taylor under Zaidi's first tenure. The club made back-to-back World Series appearances in Zaidi's final two seasons as general manager, but lost to the Houston Astros in 2017 and the Boston Red Sox in 2018.

Zaidi then left to join the Giants. He named the 2021 MLB Executive of the Year after the club set a franchise record with 107 wins in his third season with the franchise.

But that season ended with a five-game NLDS loss to the Dodgers, and the Giants haven't finished a season with a winning record since.

Zaidi signed an extension with the Giants in 2023, reported by John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle as a two-year agreement with a club option. He ultimately served out just the first year of that deal before he and the club parted ways last September.

The Giants lost out to the Dodgers in signing star free agents like Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto under Zaidi's tenure. The team almost signed star shortstop Carlos Correa to a 13-year, $350 million deal in 2022, but the agreement fell apart due to medical concerns. And even the biggest signings of Zaidi's tenure in San Francisco— the additions of Matt Chapman and Blake Snell in 2024— weren't enough to lift the Giants above .500 last season.

As noted by The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly, the Giants meanwhile struggled to develop internally-developed talent while missing out on major free agent signings, contributing to the organization's loss of faith in Zaidi.

Zaidi won't have to worry about attracting star free agents once he's back with the Dodgers, where Ohtani and Yamamoto have since been joined by Snell alongside other players like Roki Sasaki and Tanner Scott.

Kiké Hernandez is coming back to Los Angeles.

Hernandez and the Dodgers have agreed to a new contract pending a physical, according to The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya.

Hernandez hinted at the signing in a post on his Instagram:

Hernandez, who was traded to the Dodgers from the Boston Red Sox in July 2023, re-signed in Los Angeles last winter and went on to play a key role in the team's World Series win.

This article will be updated soon to provide more information and analysis.

For more from Bleacher Report on this topic and from around the sports world, check out our B/R app, homepage and social feeds—including Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, has been sentenced to 57 months in prison after stealing nearly $17 million from his ex-employer's bank account to pay off gambling debts.

Sam Blum of The Athletic provided details.

Per ESPN's Tisha Thompson, U.S. District Judge John W. Holcomb also ordered Mizuhara to pay $1.1 million to the IRS.

Thompson initially broke the news regarding Mizuhara's activities in March, leading to his firing from the Dodgers.

In April, the U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California revealed that Mizuhara was charged with bank fraud.

"According to an affidavit filed with the complaint, from November 2021 to January 2024, Mizuhara wired more than $16 million in unauthorized transfers from a checking account belong to an MLB player identified in the affidavit as "Victim A," who in fact is MLB star Shohei Ohtani," the statement read.

"The transfers from this bank account allegedly were made from devices and IP addresses associated with Mizuhara, who served as Ohtani's translator and de facto manager."

Mizuhara later admitted to placing 19,000 bets with an illegal bookmaker and amassing over $40 million in debt. In addition, Mizuhara also placed a false tax return with the IRS.

Per the U.S. Attorney's Office, Mizuhara also purchased roughly 1,000 baseball cards on eBay and Whatnot for about $325,000 using money from Ohtani's bank account.

After the sentencing, Mizuhara's lawyer, Michael G. Freedman, stated that "it is virtually certain" his client will be deported to his home country of Japan after his incarceration, per Brittny Mejia of the Los Angeles Times.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred pushed back against the notion are breaking baseball and making the sport worse

"I don't agree with that. The Dodgers are a really well-run, successful organization. Everything that they do and have done is consistent with our rules," he said Thursday, per The Athletic's Evan Drellich. "They're trying to give their fans the best possible product. Those are all positives. I recognize, however, and my email certainly reflects it: there are fans in other markets who are concerned about their team's ability to compete, and we always have to be concerned when our fans are concerned about something. But pinning it on the Dodgers, not in that camp.

The Dodgers have drawn the ire of a lot of fans for refusing to rest on their laurels in the wake of their World Series triumph. Their payroll is on track to be $375 million, per FanGraphs, after they signed 2023 Cy Young award winner Blake Snell, Japanese ace Rōki Sasaki and 2024 All-Star reliever Tanner Scott among others.

The complaints aren't limited to fans, either.

New York Yankees chairman chairman Hal Steinbrenner lamented in January that "it's difficult for most of us owners to be able to do the kind of things that they're doing." Baltimore Orioles principal owner David Rubenstein asserted the need for a salary cap, a longtime goal for MLB owners across the board.

Dodgers fans and others have pushed back against the criticism to argue the lack of spending from a lot of franchises poses a bigger issue to MLB.

There isn't a compelling reason why the Cleveland Guardians, Tampa Bay Rays, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago White Sox, Athletics and Miami Marlins should run sub-$100 million payrolls. The Guardians are coming off an ALCS appearance, yet relief pitcher Paul Sewald is their one big offseason addition.

In general, this discourse is likely to settle down somewhat once spring training starts.

One problem is that there isn't a whole lot to talk about right now when it comes to baseball. The biggest free-agent moves have happened, and we're more than a month out from Opening Day.

Having actual games to discuss will take some of the focus off the Dodgers.

Fans will also waste no time turning this all around on L.A. if the team has a slow start to the season. The once-bemoaned Goliath on the West Coast would become a regular source of mockery.

The reactions from Steinbrenner and Rubenstein, however, were notable because they hint at some division within the ranks of MLB ownership when they'll eventually need to put on a unified front for negotiations over a new collective bargaining agreement.

Shohei Ohtani could be just four months away from his Los Angeles Dodgers pitching debut.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Saturday that Ohtani returning to the mound in May "sounds about right," per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.

According to Ardaya, Ohtani said his recovery from offseason surgery on his non-throwing left shoulder remains on schedule.

The Dodgers indicated after the November procedure that Ohtani would be ready for Spring Training, but potentially only as a hitter.

Ohtani has not pitched since he was playing for the Los Angeles Angels in August 2023. He underwent surgery on a UCL tear in his right elbow the following September.

He threw off the mound for the first time undergoing the procedure last August, per CBS Sports' Mike Axisa.

According to the Los Angeles Times' Jack Harris, Ohtani had progressed to "throwing bullpen sessions regularly," but was waiting until the winter to face live batters, when he suffered the shoulder injury while sliding into a stolen base attempt in Game 2 of the World Series.

Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes told reporters on Dec. 9 during MLB Winter Meetings that Ohtani had resumed throwing again (h/t MLB.com's Sonja Chen.)

When asked how much the shoulder surgery had delayed Ohtani's return to the mound, Gomes answered, "Not that much, seemingly."

Gomes emphasized, however, that the Dodgers did not want to rush Ohtani's return, per Chen. Roberts meanwhile said it was "very unlikely" Ohtani would be ready to join the rotation by the time the Dodgers open the season in Tokyo on March 18.

Getting Ohtani on the mound for the first two months of the season won't be a priority for the defending World Series champions, who spent the offseason building the most star-studded rotation in MLB.

In addition to Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers are anticipating the return of Clayton Kershaw alongside the additions of Blake Snell and highly-anticipated Japanese rookie Rōki Sasaki.

That rotation depth means the Dodgers can afford to take their time and make sure Ohtani is as ready as possible to pitch by the 2025 postseason.

Ohtani is expected to also play as designated hitter on his pitching days, per Chen. Dodgers fans could expect to see him take on that double workload as soon as the second month of the 2025 season.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Rōki Sasaki received a basketball-related question from teams throughout his free agency, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Passan reported Thursday that some organizations asked Sasaki if he was interested in following the career path of Kevin Durant or Michael Jordan, wanting to figure out if he was attempting to "join a superteam or help build one."

Durant started his career as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder, but the superstar forward left as a free agent to join a Golden State Warriors team that finished with a 73-9 record and made an NBA Finals appearance the year before signed with the team.

As for Jordan, the legendary shooting guard won six championships on the Chicago Bulls after the Bulls selected him with the No. 3 overall pick in the 1984 NBA draft. Chicago owned a 27-55 record the year before drafting Jordan.

There's no doubt that Sasaki will be a key contributor for the Dodgers in 2025, but they still would have been viewed as a contender even if they weren't able to land him. Los Angeles won 98 games and secured a World Series victory last season, boasting superstars such as Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts.

The Dodgers have been active throughout the offseason, signing starter Blake Snell and reliever Tanner Scott in addition to Sasaki.

The New York Yankees, New York Mets, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays all reportedly held meetings with Sasaki during his free agency.

He ended up choosing to sign with the reigning World Series champions, strengthening the Dodgers' rotation as they prepare for a title defense in 2025.