The MLB Ninth: One for all and all against Dodgers

ByDavid Mitchell
The MLB Ninth: One for all and all against Dodgers

The ‘Bad Boys’ of Dodgers begin the season with the hope of winning a three-time championship and the pressure of 29 teams that would pay to dethrone them.

1. Everyone wants to dethrone the Dodgers

WE JUST CROSSED the threshold of the first week of the Major Leagues and it feels like we are in the third or fourth of the competition. Nothing strange after enjoying the incidents of the World Baseball Classic, an event that established itself as an essential appetizer and made us get into the mood early in the year. Colleague Enrique Rojas published on his X account that for the first game on Thursday (March 2) MLB would reach 3 million fans in just 8 days of the season. The first 91 games were attended by an average of 32,700. MLB has not averaged 30,000 since 2016 and the last time with 32 thousand per game was in 2008. Nothing, most fans are already in tune. And now, new stories are on the table, others will arrive, but the main plot of the season is summarized in: will the Los Angeles Dodgers win the three-time championship? According to DraftKings Sportsbooks, the Los Angeles team is the favorite at +250, followed by the New York Yankees +850, Seattle Mariners +950 and the Toronto Blue Jays, Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets, all at +1400. It is popular that the Dodgers were reinforced to the teeth in the offseason. He covered the gaps in his roster with gold. They were missing a closer, since they signed the best: Edwin Díaz. He needed an outfielder and signed the best: Kyle Tucker. And the rest, his rivals, in a total nervous breakdown. That New Evil Empire thing is too small for him. The Dodgers have created their own narrative. They now call themselves the Bad Guys. After kicking the MLB board by taking the deferred payment strategy to the limit to add a good part of the best players in the league and endorse it with two consecutive World Series rings. Will the third arrive? I don’t know, as the older people say: “the ball is round and the box comes square.” Anything can happen, so I can assure you that the remaining 29 MLB teams have probably paraphrased that battle cry written by Alexandre Dumas in his famous novel The Three Musketeers and it looks like this: One for all and all against Dodgers.

2. Pedro Martínez: They did Ohtani with Artificial Intelligence

MAYBE SHOHEI OHTANI He has not achieved the goal of retaining the title with Japan in the World Baseball Classic and his start to the season with the bat is being somewhat slow, however, his first presentation from the mound was brilliant. Something that the Dodgers should be happy about. His bet on the two-way phenom not pitching during the WBC looks set to pay off handsomely. You might think that the sample is too small to throw flyers, but the fact that a guy like former pitcher and Hall of Fame member Pedro Martínez is so surprised with the Japanese’s supreme form in his first start of the campaign only bodes well for things. Ohtani has already won everything in baseball and if his health supports him, perhaps this will be the year to win the Cy Young. I attach another piece of information, provided by colleague Sarah Langs, to have faith: Shohei Ohtani, in addition to currently having the longest active streak of on-base games in MLB (38 games), has the longest active streak of innings without allowing runs in the MLB (22 2/3 innings).

3. Sasaki, Ohtani and Yamamoto set MLB records

A SURVEY OF March 2026 from YouGov Sport, determined that 59% of Japanese fans have the Dodgers as their main reference. Well, nothing too strange when his countryman Shohei Ohtani plays on that team, a player from the era who is only compared to the best players in history. In addition to Ohtani, the Dodgers have Yoshinobu Yamamoto, MVP of the 2025 World Series and whom they signed with the most expensive contract for a pitcher in MLB history, and the young promise Roki Sasaki. Now the Dodgers took that complicity to the next level. They lined up to start Sasaki (March 30), Ohtani (March 31) and Yamamoto (April 1), something that Sarah Langs says is unprecedented in Major League history. After that strategy, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Japanese market and the Dodgers are synonymous.

4. Blake Snell and Miguel Rojas choreograph the season in MLB

YOU HAVE TO DO IT! If other people were the protagonists, I would use the phrase that a dear friend patented: “Get to work!” No wonder, learning this choreography between Blake Snell and Miguel Rojas looks more complicated than the ones that the King of Pop invented in the not-so-distant past: Michael Jackson, not Bad Bunny (I clarify just in case). But when you dig into Snell and Rojas’ resume, there is no choice (at least for manager Dave Roberts) but to let the kids have fun. Snell is a two-time Cy Young Award winner and Rojas, along with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, saved the Dodgers in the last World Series. As Enrique Rojas says, point and ball.

5. The trumpet sounds by Edwin Díaz

THE CURRENT CHAMPIONS of the World Series today had priority. It is not a matter of bias, the hierarchy simply rules. I couldn’t leave out Edwin Díaz’s first appearance in a Dodgers uniform. There’s not much to write here, I’d rather you enjoy the video. As my Puerto Rican colleagues would say: “for hairs”

6. Duel of gluttons on a day like today

THE BASEBALL OF Major League Baseball is full of unlikely stories on and off the field. Good, bad and curious. Today, April 3, I decided to dust off one of those curious stories, the ones that blow your mind (Mind-blowing). It turns out that more than a century ago, around 1919, a New York Yankees player was involved in a battle off the diamond against an ostrich, named ‘Percy’. Yes, as I told you, that controversy had nothing to do with the game of baseball, and they say it was a publicity stunt to attract fans to the Yankees’ spring training in Jacksonville, Florida. According to Baseball Reference, Ping Bodie was an outfielder preparing for his second season with the Yankees and was known among his colleagues for his disproportionate appetite. Who ate the most spaghetti? That was the competition. I don’t brown the pill much. If you thought Percy won, well you’re wrong. Bondie won by a landslide, or better yet, by technical knockout. The feathered animal fainted after the eleventh course and Bondie… as if nothing had happened. It’s been a long time, but I imagine Percy’s “promoter” didn’t find out in time that Ping Bodie’s real name was Francesco Stephano Pezzolo.

7. MLBPA and the defense of baseball players of Cuban origin

WE START FROM THE FACT that most stories have more than one version. Based on that maxim, I help myself with a colleague to bring you the part of Zach Neto, starting shortstop for the Los Angeles Angels, about his exclusion from the World Baseball Classic despite wanting to play with the Cuba team, a team that ended up eliminated in the first round and left a poor impression on the diamond of the Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico. They are his words and we have no way to contrast them. The Cuban Federation does not usually respond to these types of questions. Those of us born and living in Cuba know how it works. Outsiders, except for a few seasoned ones, have no idea. Let’s get to the point, whether you agree or disagree with what happened, what I still think is that the MLBPA should take action on the matter. After all, most of the players who shine at the event are from the Major Leagues and it is up to the MLBPA to ensure respect for their rights.

8. A tribute in difficult times

IN TIMES OF TURBULENCEit is comforting to see images like this. Two baseball teams headed to the stands to pay respect to some veterans. A round of applause for these guys. And to the veterans: Thank you for your service!

9. Acuña Jr., Soto a bet in the middle of a sterile debate

THE BETTING are fulfilled. This has already gone around the world, but I couldn’t ignore it. While senseless fights try to tarnish the historical friendship between Venezuelans and Dominicans, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Juan Soto demonstrate that between players of both nationalities there is nothing but respect, admiration and friendship.

David Mitchell
David Mitchell

As a passionate sports journalist with over a decade of experience, I strive to uncover the heart and soul behind every game. Supported by a dedicated team of fellow enthusiasts and storytellers, I am committed to delivering insightful and engaging content that connects fans worldwide. Together, we celebrate the victories, challenges, and unifying spirit of sports through every article we craft.