LOS ANGELES, California — The star-studded Los Angeles Dodgers will ramp up their bid for a rare World Series repeat on Thursday (Friday in Manila) as Major League Baseball's (MLB) season gets under way in earnest with the league's traditional opening day festivities.
The Dodgers are aiming to become the first team to successfully defend their MLB title since 2000, when the New York Yankees won the last of a hat trick of Fall Classics following championships in 1998 and 1999.
Already one of the most lavishly talented teams in baseball, with a fearsome batting lineup led by Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers face the Detroit Tigers in Thursday's home opener looking even more formidable.
After defeating the Yankees 4-1 in last October's heavyweight World Series showdown, the Dodgers wasted no time in bolstering their pitching resources during the offseason with the acquisition of several elite arms.
Two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell was brought in on a five-year $182-million contract, while the Dodgers also snagged the services of Roki Sasaki, the Japanese prodigy who will now link up with compatriots Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Add in the arrival of relievers Tanner Scott and two-time All-Star Kirby Yates, and it is easy to see why the Dodgers have been installed as early favorites to defend their crown.
Yet the Dodgers' recruitment has not come without controversy. Several rival teams and commentators have complained that the deep-pocketed Californian giants are "ruining baseball."
Those criticisms prompted Rob Manfred, Major League Baseball's commissioner, to come to the Dodgers' defense last month.
"No," Manfred said, when asked if the Dodgers were hurting the sport. "I don't agree with that. The Dodgers are a really well-run, successful organization. Everything that they do and have done is consistent with our rules. They're trying to give their fans the best possible product.
"There are fans in other markets who are concerned about their teams' ability to compete, and we always have to be concerned when our fans are concerned about something. But pinning it on the Dodgers — not in that camp."