A hearty homecoming is on tap as Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Los Angeles Dodgers will open the 2025 MLB season in Tokyo on Tuesday against fellow Japanese countrymen Shota Imanaga, Seiya Suzuki and the Chicago Cubs.

Baseball mania reached fever pitch in Japan on Friday (March 14) with public appearances of national hero Shohei Ohtani and other Japanese players set to take part in MLB season-opening games between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs.

Shohei Ohtani fever in Tokyo reached boiling point Saturday as the Japanese baseball superstar hit a home run in his first game in a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform in his home country.But it was his first ever appearance in an MLB uniform in his home country,