Major League Baseball's 2024 regular season is kicking off Wednesday on the other side of the world. The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres start the new MLB season with two games in Seoul, South Korea. These are regular-season games. They count. They are also MLB's first ever regular-season games in South Korea. This is the first time MLB has begun a new season internationally since the Oakland Athletics and Seattle Mariners played two games in Tokyo, Japan in 2019.
The Dodgers and Padres will play the two-game Seoul Series this week, then the rest of the league will begin the regular season with the traditional Opening Day next week, on Thursday, March 28. Here's how you can watch the Seoul Series opener.
Dodgers vs. Padres time, info
Date: Wednesday, March 20 | Time: 6:05 a.m. ET (3:05 a.m. PT)
Location: Gocheok Sky Dome (Seoul, South Korea)
TV channel: ESPN, SportsNet LA, Padres TV | Live stream: fubo (try for free)
Pitchers: RHP Tyler Glasnow (Dodgers) vs. RHP Yu Darvish (Padres)
Odds: LAD -190 | SD +158 | O/U: 8.5
Live updates: Follow along
Storylines
Dodgers: The Shohei Ohtani era begins. Los Angeles gave Ohtani a record 10-year, $700 million contract over the winter (with heavy deferrals), and although he will not pitch this season as he works his way back from September elbow surgery, Ohtani will hit, and he has hit a lot this spring. Manager Dave Roberts will have three MVPs atop his lineup: Mookie Betts, Ohtani, and Freddie Freeman. It gets no tougher than that for opposing pitchers. Also, Yoshinobu Yamamoto will make his MLB debut in Game 2 of the Seoul Series on Thursday. For any other team, Yamamoto would have been the marquee offseason addition, but he's second fiddle to Ohtani with the Dodgers. Los Angeles gave Yamamoto, a reigning three-time MVP in Japan, the richest pitching contract in baseball history this offseason: 12 years and $325 million. The Dodgers will show off all their new toys in Seoul this week.
Padres: At the end of last year, the Padres were one of the biggest disappointments in baseball, going 82-80 and missing the postseason despite the sport's third largest payroll. They cut back on spending this offseason, most notably trading Juan Soto and his $31 million salary, but the Padres still expect to contend in 2024. A wild-card spot is within reach and they do get to build their offense around Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, and Xander Bogaerts. That's a pretty strong core even if it's not Betts, Ohtani, and Freeman. San Diego will start Darvish and Joe Musgrove in Seoul. The rotation behind the two veteran stalwarts and the recently acquired Dylan Cease is a bit shaky. Pitchers like Pedro Avila, Jhony Brito, Michael King, and Randy Vásquez will help decide whether the Padres have a bounce-back season, or fall short of the postseason once again.
Prediction
The Dodgers take the Seoul Series opener behind Glasnow thanks of course -- of course -- to an Ohtani home run. The man has a flair for the dramatic. Dodgers 7, Padres 2
