As the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs began the 2025 regular season in Tokyo, Japan on Tuesday, the Dodgers’ lineup was missing two of its three former MVPs.
One, Mookie Betts, was previously ruled out of action by manager Dave Roberts after battling an acute illness.
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Another, first baseman Freddie Freeman, was a late scratch Tuesday with left rib discomfort — an injury he battled during the 2024 postseason.
Manager Dave Roberts #30 of the Los Angeles Dodgers is introduced prior to the MLB Tokyo Series game against Chicago Cubs at Tokyo Dome on March 18, 2025 in Tokyo, Japan. Manager Dave Roberts #30 of the Los Angeles Dodgers is introduced prior to the MLB Tokyo Series game against Chicago Cubs at Tokyo Dome on March 18, 2025 in Tokyo, Japan. Kenta Harada/Getty Images
Freeman, the 2020 National League MVP, was limited to four of the five games in the 2024 NL Division Series, and four of the six in the subsequent NLCS, by injuries to his rib cage and ankle.
He came back to hit a game-ending grand slam in the 10th inning of Game 1 of the World Series, the first walkoff grand slam in the history of the World Series. Only afterward was it reported that he played through broken rib cartilage, in addition to a right ankle sprain he suffered at the end of the regular season.
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But Freeman was 7 for 25 in nine spring training games for the Dodgers, hitting three home runs, suggesting he was physically prepared for a new season.
Between his ribs and his ankle, Freeman was expected to need time off in 2025 — just not on Opening Day.
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“We saw him in the cage and he looked fine,” former Dodgers first baseman Eric Karros said on the broadcast of Tuesday’s game between the Cubs and Dodgers on SportsNet LA. “Hopefully a few days off he’ll be ready to go.”
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The Dodgers and Cubs play twice in two days in Tokyo, then have a week off before their next regular season game.
Any amount of time off represents change for Freeman, who missed only 11 games combined across the 2018-23 seasons.
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“I do think I’m going to be getting a lot of treatment and taping … probably till the All-Star break, I would assume,” Freeman said on Feb. 27. “It’s just hard because you’re on your feet all day long. Lower-body injuries are hard to rehab, especially the ankle.”
Freeman, 35, is a career .300 hitter who made his eighth career All-Star team last season. The veteran was replaced at first base in the Dodgers’ lineup by Kiké Hernández, who is batting sixth.
Rojas is playing shortstop and batting ninth in place of Betts.
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