The Los Angeles Dodgers are just over 24 hours into their visit to South Korea for the Seoul Series as part of the 2024 MLB World Tour, and players already have enjoyed a positive experience.
Droves of fans and media welcomed the Dodgers at Incheon International Airport, with Shohei Ohtani and his wife Mamiko Tanaka drawing the majority of the attention. But the Dodgers are also led by fellow former MVP winners Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, both of whom joined Ohtani for a press conference at Gocheok Sky Dome.
“Very excited,” Betts said of getting an opportunity to visit South Korea. “I got to walk around a little bit with my wife. Getting to see the culture is super cool. But I know I’m here for work and super excited to play in front of a new fanbase.”
Freeman echoed Betts’ thoughts, expressing the Dodgers are “all excited.”
“This is my first time to play baseball anywhere overseas,” Freeman added. “To be here, I haven’t gotten out yet — I know Mook has walked around a little bit — but we’re all looking forward to looking around and seeing Korea. We’re really excited.”
As the Dodgers are working to adjust their clocks to being in South Korea, they first are scheduled to play a pair of exhibition games.
Opening Day of the 2024 season then is March 20, with the Seoul Series concluding on March 21. Yoshinobu Yamamoto is making his Dodgers debut in the second game against the San Diego Padres, which has added to the attention on the team.
“It’s been a lot, but it’s cool,” Betts said of the spotlight on the Dodgers. “It’s been fun, and seeing all this is cool. It’s super cool. It kind of is what it is. We’ve just got to make sure we take care of our job.”
Dodgers details for Seoul Series
Tyler Glasnow is starting Opening Day for the Dodgers, who are expected to have Blake Treinen, Max Muncy and Gavin Lux on their roster to begin the season despite recently dealing with respective issues.
Treinen sustained a bruised lung after being hit in the chest by a comebacker, and Lux and Muncy had fallen under the weather.
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