It’s officially time to put the offseason behind us because real Major League Baseball games are back. The 2025 season kicked off in grand fashion with the Tokyo Series, featuring the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs. And what better way to open the season than with some of the biggest international stars taking center stage?
Shohei Ohtani, Shota Imanaga, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto are just a few of the headliners stepping onto the field at the Tokyo Dome. This is giving fans across the globe a taste of elite-level baseball.
But while these two teams are playing for real, the other 28 clubs are still putting the finishing touches on their rosters as Opening Day looms on March 27.
Some teams are surging, others are stumbling, and injuries are already causing headaches around the league. So let’s take a look at some of the latest buzz making it’s way across baseball.
Acuña’s WBC Plans Could Be a Nightmare for the Braves
For Braves fans, 2024 was a season they’d rather forget. A team built for a deep postseason run never even got off the ground after devastating injuries to two of their biggest stars.
Spencer Strider went down early with a torn UCL, requiring surgery. Then, Ronald Acuña Jr. later tore his ACL, knocking him out for the entire year. Both missed the remainder of the season and are still in recovery mode heading into 2025.
Strider is back on the mound, already looking sharp in spring training. But Acuña is in the headlines for a different reason—his interest in playing in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
From a fan’s perspective, it’s easy to understand why Acuña wants to suit up for his country. The WBC is a massive event, and players always talk about how much pride they take in representing their home nations. But from the Braves’ point of view, this has to be a little nerve-wracking.
Acuña hasn’t even returned to MLB action yet following his second major knee injury. The idea of him playing high-intensity baseball in a tournament setting, before proving he’s fully back, has to raise some red flags in Atlanta’s front office.
Braves fans will no doubt be excited to see Acuña back on the field soon. Before they start thinking about the WBC, they’d probably like to see him healthy for a full MLB season first.
Padres Missing Out on Sasaki Stings Even More Now
The San Diego Padres put in a serious effort to land Roki Sasaki this offseason. In the end, he signed with the Dodgers instead. And that miss is only looking worse now that Yu Darvish has hit a minor setback in his return from an injury-plagued 2024 season.
The Padres are citing general fatigue as the issue for Darvish. That isn’t a catastrophic development, but it does put more pressure on a rotation that already had question marks.
If the Padres had been able to lock down Sasaki, they wouldn’t be sweating over Darvish’s workload nearly as much. Instead, they now have to watch him dominate in Dodger blue for the foreseeable future.
Adding insult to injury? The Padres will be seeing a lot of Sasaki as an NL West rival. He could be making their path to the playoffs even harder in the years to come.
Gleyber Torres’ Stubbornness Could Create Issues in Detroit
Last year, Gleyber Torres made headlines in New York when he refused to shift over to third base after the Yankees traded for Jazz Chisholm Jr.. The Yankees ultimately found a way to make it work, with Chisholm adjusting just fine, but now Torres finds himself in a similar situation in Detroit.
The Tigers, who signed Torres this offseason, are already dealing with injuries at third base. And some fans are wondering whether Torres would be willing to shift over to help fill the gap.
But let’s be real—based on his history, that seems unlikely. Torres has been adamant that he’s a second baseman, and only a second baseman. While there’s been no official report yet that he has refused to play third in Detroit, it wouldn’t be shocking if he pushed back on the idea.
Detroit may need to get creative with their infield alignment to handle their early-season injuries, but betting on Torres to be flexible probably isn’t the safest bet.
Final Thoughts on Recent MLB Rumors
With Opening Day just around the corner, the excitement for the 2025 season is reaching its peak. The Tokyo Series is giving fans an early taste of meaningful baseball, but the rest of the league is dealing with injury concerns, roster dilemmas, and missed opportunities before the season even gets rolling.
Acuña’s WBC plans, Darvish’s setback, and Torres’ positional stubbornness are just a few of the stories worth watching as the final days of spring training unfold. Buckle up—this MLB season is already off to an eventful start.
