Tokyo Series: Freddie Freeman scratched from Dodgers lineup vs. Cubs
The Cubs are catching another break to open the 2025 season, as star first baseman Freddie Freeman was scratched from the Dodgers lineup.
The Athletic’s Dodgers reporter Fabian Ardaya posted the news just before the game:
The team announced left rib discomfort for Freeman.
The Dodgers are already without Mookie Betts, who will miss the Tokyo Series due to illness.
So now they are down two of their top three position players for the first pair of 2025 regular season games.
[MORE: Cubs set 2025 Opening Day roster]
Freeman was initially slotted to hit 3rd in the Dodgers order, behind Shohei Ohtani and Tommy Edman.
Kiké Hernández moved from left field to first base and Michael Conforto entered the Dodgers lineup as the team’s new left fielder against Shota Imanaga.
The updated Dodgers lineup is as follows:
- Shohei Ohtani – DH
- Tommy Edman – 2B
- Teoscar Hernández – RF
- Will Smith – C
- Max Muncy – 3B
- Kiké Hernández – 1B
- Michael Conforto – LF
- Miguel Rojas – SS
- Andy Pages – CF
Freeman, 35, has been named to the National League All-Star team in each of the last 6 full seasons. He won the NL MVP in 2020 with the Braves and earned MVP votes in each of the 4 years since.
Last year, he slashed .282/.378/.476 (.854 OPS) with the Dodgers along with 22 homers, 89 RBI and 81 runs scored.
The Cubs will line up like this for the Opening Day tilt against Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Dodgers in the Tokyo Dome:
- Ian Happ – LF
- Seiya Suzuki – DH
- Kyle Tucker – RF
- Michael Busch – 1B
- Matt Shaw – 3B
- Dansby Swanson – SS
- Pete Crow-Armstrong – CF
- Miguel Amaya – C
- Jon Berti – 2B
Shota Imanaga – P
Imanaga gets the ball in his home country to open the Cubs’ season after going 15-3 with a 2.91 ERA in his rookie campaign last year.
[READ: What 2025 MLB Tokyo Series means for Cubs’ Shota Imanaga, Seiya Suzuki]
Catch all the action on Marquee Sports Network, including “Cubs Postgame Live!” after the game.