TOKYO – The Tokyo Dome fell quiet as Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga stared down the mound and Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani settled into his stance in the batter’s box.
After an Opening Day ceremony that included a grand-piano national anthem performance, flashing wristbands across the stadium timed up to hype videos, and giant on-field Pikachus bobbing along to lineup announcements, it was a discordant moment of stillness.
Then Imanaga unleashed a high heater for the first pitch of the game, a called strike. And the 2025 season was off to the races.
The Cubs opened their season with a 4-1 loss Tuesday to the Dodgers to kick off the two-game Tokyo series.
Imanaga won that first at-bat, inducing Ohtani to ground out to the right side of the field. Then in the third inning, he got him to line out. Ohtani is 0-for-7 against Imanaga all time.
Imanaga walked four batters on Tuesday, a career high. But he navigated that traffic by holding the Dodgers hitless through four innings.
The Cubs took the lead in the second inning, when Miguel Amaya drove a long fly ball into the right-center gap to score Dansby Swanson from second base.
Soon after Imanaga left the game, replaced by right-hander Ben Brown in the fifth inning, the Dodgers lineup started producing.
Brown walked No. 9 hitter Andy Pages with one out, turning the Dodgers’ batting order over to Ohtani at leadoff. He got on top of a high curveball, sending it into right field for a single and the Dodgers’ first hit of the game, moving Pages to third.
Up next, Tommy Edman hit a line drive into left, and Cubs outfielder Ian Happ made a diving stop to keep it to a single. But Pages scored, tying the game at one run apiece.
All that was manageable damage from an offense that’s solid even without Mookie Betts (illness) or Freddie Freeman (left rib discomfort). But then the Cubs’ defense – which needs to be one of its strengths for them to compete in the National League this season – faltered.
Third baseman Matt Shaw handled a sharp ground ball from Teoscar Hernández and fired to second to throw out Edman. But second baseman Jon Berti made an ill-advised attempt to turn a double play and his throw soared out of first baseman Michael Busch’s reach.
The error brought in another run and put Hernández on second, where he scored easily on Will Smith’s single the next at-bat.
That three-run rally would have been enough against the Cubs’ quiet offense. But they added another in the ninth with a leadoff double from Ohtani and an RBI single from Smith against veteran reliever Ryan Brasier.