The Los Angeles Dodgers are currently the kings of the baseball world, weeks removed from winning the 2024 World Series. Unanimous National League MVP Shohei Ohtani was as good as expected in his first season with the Dodgers.

The announcements came like a metronome at the start of last season, a steady stream of almost weekly news releases from the Dodgers announcing one Japanese sponsorship deal after the next.

DALLAS — The Los Angeles Dodgers expect Shohei Ohtani to be ready to hit when the reigning World Series champions open their season in Japan against the Chicago Cubs on March 18 and 19. “I don’t think he’d have it any other way,” manager Dave Roberts said of the NL MVP who had left shoulder surgery. “That’s our expectation.”