The wait is over. Baseball is back. And it’s onerous to think about a greater opening act for the 2024 season than this one: an NL West showdown midway the world over, that includes Major League Baseball’s first regular-season video games in South Korea.
Set your alarms. The Padres and Dodgers sq. off in Game 1 of the Seoul Series on Wednesday morning at 3:05 a.m. PT (6:05 a.m. ET).
The Gocheok SkyDome provides fairly a setting for Shohei Ohtani’s Dodgers debut. Ohtani — the offseason’s largest free-agent prize and the face of the game — will likely be opposed by one of many faces of baseball in Korea. Padres shortstop Ha-Seong Kim hails from close by Bucheon and as soon as performed his KBO residence video games in the exact same ballpark.
Here’s what it’s essential find out about Wednesday’s opener:
When is the game, and the way can I watch it?
First pitch is slated for 7:05 p.m. native time in Seoul — which equates to six:05 a.m. ET and three:05 a.m. PT on Wednesday morning. The game will stream within the U.S. on MLB.TV. and also will be televised domestically on SportsNet LA in Los Angeles. A nationwide telecast will likely be obtainable on ESPN.
Fans in San Diego, Tijuana and the Padres’ residence territory can watch each video games dwell or on demand for FREE on Padres.TV, the re-branded streaming possibility for all common season Padres video games. Fans may also tune in to observe the video games dwell domestically on ESPN or hear on 97.3 The Fan and XEMO-AM La Poderosa 860.
Who are the beginning pitchers?
Dodgers: RHP Tyler Glasnow (10-7, 3.53 ERA final season)
Glasnow will get the Game 1 nod, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto slated to start out Game 2, because the Dodgers flip to 2 of their prized pitching acquisitions from the offseason. Los Angeles acquired Glasnow from Tampa Bay in a December commerce. Wednesday will mark Glasnow’s second profession Opening Day begin, after he began the opener for Tampa Bay in 2021.
Padres: RHP Yu Darvish (8-10, 4.56 ERA final season)
It’s the fourth Opening Day begin for Darvish and his third as a Padre, with San Diego opting to show to Darvish forward of Joe Musgrove for Game 2. Darvish is coming off an injury-riddled 2023 and was shut down in August because of a stress response in his proper elbow. But he obtained clearance for a full offseason program in November and has been sharp all spring.
What are the possible beginning lineups?
Dodgers: The Dodgers rolled out their star-studded lineup within the two exhibition video games in Seoul, and it has the possibility to be one of the vital dominant in Major League historical past. Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman will likely be main the way in which all season lengthy.
Padres: Manny Machado is coming off October elbow surgical procedure and is slated to start the 12 months as a delegated hitter, leaving the Padres with a emptiness at third base. Graham Pauley, Eguy Rosario and Tyler Wade are the candidates to fill it.
Meanwhile, Jackson Merrill has formally made the group and is now formally listed as an outfielder, establishing the career-long shortstop to change into the youngest Opening Day middle fielder since Andruw Jones in 1996, and simply the fourth beneath the age of 21 within the growth period (since 1969) — regardless of having discovered the place on the fly this spring. Merrill will flip 21 on April 19.
How will the bullpens line up after the starter?
Dodgers: The Dodgers will navigate their bullpen similar to what they did to finish final season. Evan Phillips will get the vast majority of save alternatives, however he’ll even be obtainable in high-leverage spots earlier in video games. Ryan Brasier, Joe Kelly, Daniel Hudson and Blake Treinen may even be in high-leverage spots. If the Dodgers want a number of innings out of the bullpen, they’ll have Kyle Hurt, Michael Grove and Ryan Yarbrough prepared for a number of frames.
Padres: San Diego by no means formally named a more in-depth, although that position will virtually definitely fall to Robert Suarez, who spent the previous couple seasons serving as Josh Hader’s setup man. Steven Wilson, who went to the White Sox within the Dylan Cease commerce, is a notable loss. But newcomers Yuki Matsui and Wandy Peralta may assist fill these setup innings. Meanwhile, Michael King, who was acquired as a starter, will likely be obtainable out of the ‘pen for the 2 video games in Korea.
Dodgers: Brusdar Graterol didn’t make the journey to South Korea as he continues to work via hip and proper shoulder discomfort. The Dodgers hope to have Graterol back in some unspecified time in the future early within the season.
Padres: Machado’s October elbow surgical procedure will restrict him to DH duties. Otherwise, none.
Who’s sizzling, who’s not?
Dodgers: Betts, Ohtani and Freeman had terrific springs for the Dodgers. The identical will be mentioned for Muncy, James Outman and Hernández. The Dodgers’ lineup doesn’t have many holes this season.
Padres: Merrill put forth a red-hot spring, hitting .351 with a .995 OPS within the Cactus League to earn his beginning spot. Kim was equally glorious, going 8-for-26 (.308) with 4 extra-base hits in Catcus League play earlier than (*1*) on Monday in Korea. Bogaerts, in the meantime, struggled for many of camp, hitting .233 with a .657 OPS.
Anything else followers ought to know?
• Game 1 counts as a Padres residence game (with the 2 groups flipping for Game 2). That means Ohtani and Darvish are prone to sq. off within the high of the primary inning. Teammates with Team Japan throughout final 12 months’s run to the World Baseball Classic title, Ohtani and Darvish have by no means confronted one another within the large leagues.
• Bogaerts already owns a spot in worldwide baseball historical past as the one participant with residence runs in 4 totally different nations — the United States, Canada, England (in London with the Red Sox in 2019) and Mexico (in Mexico City with the Padres in ‘23).
• The Padres and Dodgers have met as soon as earlier than on the worldwide stage, enjoying three video games in Monterrey, Mexico, in 2018. In Game 1 of that collection, right-hander Walker Buehler spearheaded a combined no-hitter for the Dodgers, however the Padres would reply by profitable the following two video games.