Dodgers’ journey to three-peat begins as Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto take the mound in Arizona

GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Los Angeles Dodgers are back at the beginning, once again preparing to climb the mountain that is the major league season, with the goal of adding to this golden age for the franchise.

The Friday, Feb. 13 report date for Dodgers pitchers and catchers was the most recent of any team in the league, a suitably delayed start after the Dodgers’ championship extended into November. And unlike the previous two years, when the Dodgers opened the season with series in Seoul and Tokyo, the team will remain anchored in west Phoenix this spring, providing a little more wiggle room to get into camp activities, rather than having to arrive early and rush through the preparation process.

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“First day, good,” manager Dave Roberts said. “Having the pitchers and the catchers here, the majority of the position players are already there. The guys are anxious. I think for me we have a long camp, longer than we’ve had the last few years. So trying to get the guys to start slow but intentional, methodical…that’s kind of the message.”

While the World Baseball Classic will add a wrinkle to a handful of Dodgers stars, the vast majority of the team is heading into a more normal spring training leading up to Opening Day against the D-backs on March 26 at Dodger Stadium. Granted, there’s not much that’s normal on even the most average day at Camelback Ranch, the spring training home of MLB’s supervillains and superheroes, a mind-blowing collection of baseball talent that only grows bigger every year.

A large banner touting Los Angeles’ status as “BACK-TO-BACK WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS” now adorns the chain-link fence overlooking the bullpen mounds. A full week before the Cactus League slate began, hordes of fans swarmed backfields Friday hoping to see their favorite Dodgers in action, even in low-intensity practice settings. As each player filed out of the facilities onto the fields, the crowds erupted, offering expressions of adoration and appreciation for the team that gave them so much to cheer about during their back-to-back title runs.

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The specifics of what was happening on each field seemed less important than the fact that it was happening: Baseball is back, bringing a breath of fresh air after a long winter. But Friday offered a particularly intriguing sample of on-field activity, at least by mid-February standards: Shohei Ohtani pitched a bullpen and Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw live batting practice.

The duo is in their third spring together, and the buzz around their presence in Glendale grows each year as the two accomplish more and more while wearing Dodger blue. Ohtani enters his first spring fully healthy with the Dodgers, preparing to showcase his unprecedented two-way abilities right out of the gate in 2026. Yamamoto is just months removed from one of the most legendary pitching performances in World Series history, earning a near-mythical aura that now follows him in perpetuity. Perhaps more relevant still, both stars are preparing to represent Japan at the World Baseball Classic, adding a level of urgency to their early camp activities that most of their teammates don’t yet feel.

Along with the American Will Smith, the Puerto Rican Edwin Diaz (reminder: he is now part of the Dodgers) and the Korean Hyeseong Kim, Ohtani and Yamamoto are two of the five players in the Dodgers camp who should participate in the next international tournament. Japan’s pool matches will take place in Tokyo, with its first official match on March 6 and five preparatory friendlies against NPB clubs starting on February 22. Roberts said Friday he did not know exactly when the duo would return to Japan. But it stands to reason that it will be at least a few days before Smith and Diaz have to leave to join their national teams, whose training will begin in early March. As such, the time spent in Arizona is particularly crucial for the two Japanese stars.

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Yamamoto faced Smith and Kim for a few at-bats each during his live batting practice session Friday, drawing weak contact from Kim and a swing-and-miss from Smith on a two-seam fastball that had the All-Star catcher shaking his head in disbelief. Yamamoto seemed as attentive as ever, his picturesque mechanics deploying in perfect order to trigger throws wherever he wanted. It was an infinitely weaker frame than his most recent experience on the mound, but it was still Yamamoto. To that end, it’s impossible to watch him now without recalling the unfathomable feats of pitching endurance he demonstrated in the Fall Classic. Still, Roberts isn’t worried about a lingering hangover from the right-hander’s rare workload in recent postseasons, even as Yamamoto prepares to compete in the WBC.

“I just think he knows his limitations and he’s prepared,” Roberts said. “So I’m not too worried.”

Earlier Friday, it was Ohtani’s turn to take the mound, but not against hitters. His bullpen took place right alongside Diaz, who was throwing his first high-intensity throws into his new yarns. Unlike Yamamoto, Ohtani isn’t preparing to compete in the World Baseball Classic — he’ll compete in the Downhill only for Team Japan — but that doesn’t diminish the hype surrounding Ohtani’s first full season in the Dodgers’ rotation. Roberts wasn’t shy about expressing his expectations for what Ohtani The Pitcher is capable of now that he’s even further removed from his second elbow surgery.

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“I think there’s definitely a lot more to it,” the manager said. “And whatever my expectations of him are, his are going to exceed them. And I think it’s fair to say that he expects to be in the Cy Young conversation. But we just want him to be healthy and make a debut, and all the numbers and stats will take care of themselves.”

When asked if being the league’s best pitcher was indeed a personal goal, Ohtani wouldn’t confirm his ambitions, but acknowledged it could be in the cards if he’s able to stay on the mound.

“If it ends up being a Cy Young, that’s great,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. “Getting a Cy Young just means being able to throw more innings and pitching throughout the season. So if that’s the end result, that’s a good sign for me. That’s what I’m focusing on more: being healthy all year round.”

Redirecting the focus on its sustainability may seem like a way of downplaying its ambition, but it is also rooted in reality. The closest Ohtani came to winning a Cy Young came during his healthiest campaign in 2022, when he pitched a career-high 166 innings. He ultimately settled for fourth place that year (and second place in MVP voting), but it reminds us that his potential as a pitcher should by no means be overlooked. For all the prolific feats of power and speed Ohtani has demonstrated as a hitter, as 2026 approaches, he seems eager to take advantage of his current physical condition and remind everyone what he’s capable of on the mound.

“Everything he does is intentional,” Roberts said. “So I’m really excited to see — with the whole offseason to prepare and not rehabilitate — what he can do this year.”