The Los Angeles Dodgers completed a Tokyo Series sweep of the Chicago Cubs with a 6-3 victory, backed by a home run from Shohei Ohtani and the MLB debut of Roki Sasaki.
The highly-anticipated debut of Sasaki left mixed results on the field, showing signs of pure dominance while also working through clear command issues. Sasaki walked five hitters, including three-straight in the third inning, which led to a run and cut his outing short.
However, after the three walks, Sasaki bounced back with two consecutive strikeouts to escape the jam and limit the damage. Overall, he finished his debut outing with three innings pitched, giving up one run on one hit with three strikeouts.
The Dodgers jumped out to an early lead in the second inning, scoring their first run on a passed ball before Kiké Hernández hit a sacrifice fly to put them up 2-0.
Although Ohtani blasted a home run in the fifth inning, it was Tommy Edman who hit the first homer of the 2025 season. That came in the third inning and gave the Dodgers a 3-0 lead.
Hernández also hit the second homer for the Dodgers, a two-run shot in the fourth inning that scored Will Smith and gave L.A. a 5-1 lead before Ohtani blasted their third of the game one inning later that made it a 6-2 game.
Following Sasaki, Luis García took over in the fourth inning. After retiring the first two hitters, he allowed the Cubs to rally with a walk and two singles that gave the Cubs their second run.
Jack Dreyer took over for his MLB debut in the fifth inning, and he also allowed the Cubs to rally with two outs. Matt Shaw started it off with a single and came around to score on a double from Dansby Swanson.
Landon Knack pitched two scoreless innings while striking out three hitters and giving up just one hit. Kirby Yates also made his Dodgers debut, striking out two in a scoreless frame.
Alex Vesia pitched a scoreless ninth inning to record the save as the Dodgers seemed to have made it a priority to avoid using pitchers on consecutive days this early in the season.
Dodgers return to Los Angeles
With the Tokyo Series now in the books, the Dodgers are returning to Los Angeles, where they’ll play three Freeway Series exhibition games against the L.A. Angels from March 24-26. Following that, the Dodgers host their home opener against the Detroit Tigers on March 28.
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