While most other teams are slowly paring down their rosters in the final weeks of spring training, the Cubs and Dodgers kicked off regular season play with a trip to Tokyo. This two-game series is becoming an annual tradition now with those teams having an accelerated start to the season. As a result, we get an early understanding of their final roster decisions as well as key player roles. That’s we wanted to focus this week’s Cactus League Update on the key takeaway from the Tokyo Series.
Cactus League Update for Week 4: Tokyo Series Takeaways
1. All Eyes on Sasaki
While Roki Sasaki isn’t the first major player to come over from Japan, he is the third youngest ever to make the jump. At just 23 year old he’s already well known on the global stage. In fact, his dominant pitching performance in the last World Baseball Classic propelled him to top international prospect status. Now, pitching for the Dodgers, his return to Japan garnered immense attention. It was clear the excitement and hype affected him as he showed visible nervousness. As a result, he issued a surprising five walks. Though, he leaned on his splitter to generate three strikeouts and held a strong Cubs lineup to only one hit.
Not every pitcher could handle the pressure of getting out of a jam like this in front of 45,000 fans in Tokyo.
Not every pitcher is Roki Sasaki.pic.twitter.com/zvKbSJvIEv
— Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) March 19, 2025
2. Yamamoto and Imanaga Shine in Their Homecoming
Two other prominent Japanese pitchers, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shota Imanaga, made their return in game 1. For both, this was an opportunity to enter their second season in the major leagues with a strong start. Both pitchers succeeded greatly in achieving that ambition. In fact, Imanaga had a no-hitter going through four innings until he was pulled from the game. Similarly, Yamamoto exited after five strong innings where he allowed only four base runners and gave up only one run. Even though it was their first outing of the year, both pitchers were clearly giving it their all in from of their home country crowd.
The pitching matchup is set 👀
Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shota Imanaga will take the mound to start Game 1 of the Tokyo Series.
📺: March 18 on FOX pic.twitter.com/nkTFKYyboF
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 12, 2025
3. Freeman Ends Up A Late Scratch
After offseason ankle surgery there’s been concern about Freddie Freeman’s ability to play a full load this season. In fact, his manager Dave Roberts shared a plan to give him extra rest on day games that follow night games. So when it was announced that Freeman was a late scratch for the Tokyo Series it immediately raised concerns in the fantasy community. However, the reason for not playing wasn’t actually tied to his ankle recovery. It was due to rib soreness which should heal in time for their next series. At least that’s the hope.
The MVP of the 2024 World Series, Freddie Freeman was removed from the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup vs. the Chicago Cubs in Tokyo with a rib injury. https://t.co/ALhr1Awb0e
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) March 19, 2025
4. Matt Shaw Gets the Call
A silver lining to the Cub’s two losses to start the season was the long-anticipated debut of top prospect Matt Shaw. To no surprise, Shaw proved his readiness for the big leagues in spring training with a .313 batting average and .421 OBP. While his first two games in the Show weren’t spectacular, with only one hit in his first nine at-bats, he gained critical experience in a high-intensity situation. Upon his return to the States, one would think that Shaw will settle into his everyday role in the lineup and show his production potential.
Welcome to the show, Matt Shaw!@Cubs No. 1 prospect and @MLBPipeline's No. 19 overall prospect will make his MLB debut at the #TokyoSeries! He's batting 5th and playing 3B. pic.twitter.com/ZfyvQFOJOg
— MLB (@MLB) March 18, 2025
5. The Dodgers Bullpen Gives Little Clarity
The Dodgers have stockpiled several notable young arms in their starting pitching rotation, like Sasaki, Yamamoto, and others. They’ve also added several key players to their bullpen. In fact, they brought in a combined 57 saves in 2024 between the Kirby Yates and Tanner Scott signings. This is on top of the 50 saves across 14 players they had last year. With so many potential closers fantasy managers were eager to see who would be crowned the team’s primary closer. In game 1, Tanner Scott got the first save chance of the season and shined. Though, in game 2 the opportunity went to Alex Vesia. Both cruised through their outings to close out the games with ease. Add in the eventual return of Michael Kopech and the long-term closer picture is murky at best.
Tanner Scott slams the door for the first @Dodgers win of the season 🔥 #TokyoSeries pic.twitter.com/ymQrJtvlWy
— MLB (@MLB) March 18, 2025
With real baseball games taking place this week it reminds fantasy managers to not overreact too strongly to spring training news. All teams have fluid situations so the key is to monitor storylines that may spell over into the season to make calculated draft decisions. That’s why we plan to wrap up our Cactus League update series next week with a look at the most notable position battle outcomes from spring. Let me know who else you see standing out so far this spring by reaching me on BlueSky or X at @TheToddMpls.
Check out our full 2025 Fantasy Baseball Draft Kit for more of the great fantasy baseball analysis from FantraxHQ! We’re here for you all the way up until Opening Day and then on into your championship run.
