Major League Baseball says the 2025 regular season will start in Tokyo with games between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs.
MLB released its regular season schedule on Thursday.
The Dodgers and the Cubs are scheduled to face off against each other on March 18 and 19 at the Tokyo Dome.
Other teams will hold their openers on March 27.
Japanese superstar Ohtani Shohei of the Dodgers may return to serving as a two-way player during the games in Tokyo. He underwent surgery on his right elbow last September. This season he is serving as a designated hitter, and he is participating in a pitching rehab program.
Fans also expect his Japanese teammate, Yamamoto Yoshinobu, to take the mound during the opening games.
Pitcher Imanaga Shota and outfielder Suzuki Seiya of the Cubs are also Japanese players. Imanaga joined the team this season and took part in the All-Star Game.
MLB has been holding preseason and official games around the world to encourage more people to play baseball and attract more fans. It held the 2024 season-opening series between the Dodgers and the San Diego Padres in South Korea.
The two games in Tokyo will be the first official MLB games held in Japan since March 2019, when the Seattle Mariners played the Oakland Athletics. That was Japanese baseball legend Suzuki Ichiro's last game as a professional player.