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The Dodgers could open the 2024 season against the Padres in South Korea, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union Tribune:
The plan, according to sources, is for the two National League West rivals to open the ‘24 season with the first MLB games ever played in South Korea.
The two-game series would be played in late March.
Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic also reported that the Dodgers “are on the short list of clubs who could play in Korea next season.”
From Dennis Lin at The Athletic:
Although there still are a lot of logistics to sort out, the current expectation is that a Padres-Dodgers series next season in Korea would take place in Seoul, home of Ha-Seong Kim’s Kiwoom Heroes.
— Dennis Lin (@dennistlin) May 7, 2023
The collective bargaining agreement between MLB owners and players, which runs from 2022-26, called for “a robust international play plan in which Clubs will stage games or tours in Mexico, Asia, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, London, and Paris over the next five years in order to grow the game.”
This year, the Giants and Padres played two games in Mexico City on April 28-29, and the Cubs and Cardinals are set to play two games in London this June 24-25.
Having the games in late March fits with the pattern of every other regular season game that’s been played in Asia or Australia. Major League Baseball has played games in Tokyo in 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2019, all two-game series and all in March, all at least four days before domestic opening day. Similarly, the when Dodgers and Diamondbacks opened the 2014 season in Sydney, they played spring training games in the week in between that series and domestic opening day.
MLB regular season games in Asia & Australia
| Year | Teams | Location | Dates | Domestic opening day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Teams | Location | Dates | Domestic opening day |
| 2000 | Cubs vs. Mets | Tokyo | March 29-30 | Apr 3 |
| 2004 | Devil Rays vs. Yankees | Tokyo | March 30-31 | Apr 4 |
| 2008 | Red Sox vs. A's | Tokyo | March 25-26 | Mar 30 |
| 2012 | Mariners vs. A's | Tokyo | March 28-29 | Apr 4 |
| 2014 | Dodgers vs. D-backs | Sydney | March 22-23 | Mar 30 |
| 2019 | Mariners vs. A's | Tokyo | March 20-21 | Mar 28 |
Playing a game in South Korea would mark the third time the Dodgers will have played regular season games outside the United States or Canada. They also played in a three-game series in Monterrey, Mexico in 2018, a series that included Walker Buehler and three relief pitchers combining on a no-hitter, to date the last no-hitter in franchise history.
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