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PHOENIX — It’s only fitting that the pitcher who recorded the Dodgers’ final eight outs of the World Series will take the mound on opening day, as the club tries to pick up where it left off in 2025 and chase a third straight championship in 2026.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Monday that World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto will toe the rubber for the March 26 opener at Dodger Stadium against the Arizona Diamondbacks — the second straight year he’s had the honor and the first time at home, after pitching last season’s opener in Tokyo against the Chicago Cubs.
Roberts added Yamamoto is expected to return to Camelback Ranch soon, after participating in the World Baseball Classic with Team Japan. The Samurai Warriors, seeking a second straight WBC title, were eliminated by Team Venezuela Saturday night in the quarterfinals.
Yamamoto is expected to make one more start in the Cactus League before opening day, although the date has yet to be scheduled, according to Roberts.
Shohei Ohtani returned to Dodgers camp Monday morning, and Roberts plans to have a conversation with him soon about configuring his throwing plan leading up to regular season play. Per Roberts, Ohtani threw four innings in a simulated game while with Team Japan last Thursday.
“He’s going to get here and throw a bullpen,” Roberts said, adding: “I’m trying to figure out when we can get him into a game, but it should be here in the next day or two, to take some at bats. But as far as his progression, there’s going to be a bullpen soon, and [we’re] trying to figure out what day he’s going to pitch this week. It should be this week, but I’m not sure which day yet.”
Ohtani has not pitched in a Cactus League game and did not pitch in the WBC. Roberts does not expect the four-time MVP to be fully stretched out by the start of the regular season. Still, as Roberts notes, he’s further along than he was at this time a year ago, when he was working his way back from Tommy John surgery.
“I think this year we’re certainly north of that, I don’t see how we won’t be able to get to three or four innings in a major league game, so that’s certainly a better jumping-off point than last year, so we’ll see how it goes,” Roberts said.
Beyond Yamamoto, Ohtani and trusty veteran Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers’ back end of the rotation is still taking shape. Though Roberts had considered a six-man rotation to begin regular season play, he indicated Monday that he expects the club to use a five-man rotation, noting that things are still “fluid.”
Last week, Roberts said he “didn’t see a world in which Roki Sasaki doesn’t break [camp] as a starter.” That would leave one rotation spot up for the taking, with 25-year-old Justin Wrobleski, 26-year-old Emmet Sheehan and 27-year-old River Ryan among those in the running.
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Sasaki to make Cactus League start Tuesday
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Sasaki is scheduled to make a Cactus League start Tuesday night against the Kansas City Royals at Surprise Stadium.
Sasaki struck out nine of 13 batters he faced in B-game last week against Chicago White Sox minor leaguers on the backfields of Camelback Ranch.
“The last outing was really good, albeit on the other side,” Roberts said. “I’m looking to see it myself and see just more of what he did. So, if he can throw the fastball the way he did, throw the split the way he did, he should be able to manage major league hitters. So, I’m really excited about what we see from him tomorrow. Hopefully, the plan is to get him through five innings, and that would be a huge win.”
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Dodgers ‘dodge a bullet’ with Gavin Stone
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While Gavin Stone has not yet returned to throwing since he was shut down two weeks ago, Roberts shared an encouraging update regarding his 27-year-old pitcher that he is working his way back from shoulder surgery that caused him to miss all of 2025.
“He is pain-free now, yes,” Roberts said. “I know that he’s close to starting to ramp up again. I think it was two weeks that we wanted to have him not throw a baseball, and so, just building up the arm strength, getting that soreness out. But I think we dodged a bullet, considering where we were at a few weeks ago.”
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