Fresh off a World Series win, the Los Angeles Dodgers look even more formidable in 2025

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Yoshinobu Yamamoto let loose a few fastballs and some nasty breaking balls during a bullpen session while manager Dave Roberts and pitching coach Mark Prior stood a few steps to each side of the pitcher, smiling as the ball popped into the mitt of catcher Will Smith.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were in a pretty good mood as spring training began at Camelback Ranch.

The defending World Series champions went through a light workout on Tuesday and most of their stars were on the field, including NL MVP Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts. Left-hander Clayton Kershaw played catch, a sign that the three-time Cy Young Award winner is returning for his 18th season.

“Everyone’s more hungry than ever,” third baseman Max Muncy said.

Muncy said he's been in Arizona for the past 1 1/2 weeks, coming to the Dodgers facility early to get in defensive work with Betts and Miguel Rojas. It's been a short offseason: The Dodgers hoisted the World Series trophy barely three months ago after beating the New York Yankees in five games.

Betts said the quick turnaround presents challenges, but they're good problems to have.

“It's definitely tough, but we didn't win last year because we were talking about the World Series every day,” Betts said. "We won last year because we talked about the task at hand every day.

“We have an end goal, of course, but you have to take stepping stones to get there. We'll get there when we get there.”

Los Angeles opens against the Chicago Cubs in Tokyo on March 18-19 and is trying to become the first team to win back-to-back World Series since the New York Yankees won three in a row from 1998-2000. The Dodgers' owners spent to sign two-time All-Star Blake Snell, Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki and relievers Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates.

“Talent will take you to a certain place,” Rojas said. “But then the character will make you win championships. We realized that last year.”

Ohtani didn't pitch last year following elbow surgery and is recovering from a partially torn labrum in his left (non-throwing) shoulder, an injury sustained while sliding into second base during the World Series.

Even without pitching, Ohtani won MVP last season after becoming the first MLB player to hit 50 homers and have 50 stolen bases in the same season. Now he'll try to return to the mound, where he was 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA in 2023 with the Los Angeles Angels.

Roberts said at the team's fan fest on Feb. 2 that a May return to the mound is “about right." The manager also said Ohtani's recovery from the offseason shoulder surgery was encouraging.

“He looks really strong,” Roberts said. “I saw some videos recently and you just wouldn’t think that there was any shoulder surgery this past winter.”

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said last week that some fans were concerned about the sport's lack of a salary cap, mostly because of the big spending of teams like the Dodgers and New York Mets.

Muncy says the team welcomes the attention — positive or negative.

“It's just the nature of Dodger Stadium, our fans, the scene,” Muncy said. “We go on the road, our fans travel so well that we're selling out every stadium we go to and that was even before the last couple years.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Los Angeles Dodgers' Hyeseong Kim, of South Korea, works out at the Dodgers baseball spring training facility, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw warms up at the Dodgers baseball spring training facility, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (18), of Japan, gets a smile out of Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, right, after Yamamoto's pitching session at the Dodgers baseball spring training facility Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki, of Japan, warms up at the Dodgers baseball spring training facility, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, of Japan, throws during a pitching session at the Dodgers baseball spring training facility, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

FILE - Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw stands on the field during practice in preparation for Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the San Diego Padres in Los Angeles, Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File)

FILE - New Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki poses during a a baseball news conference at Dodger Stadium Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025 in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki, of Japan, walks to a practice field to warm up at the Dodgers baseball spring training facility, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani, right, of Japan, walks back to the clubhouse at the Dodgers baseball spring training facility after working out Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani, of Japan, warms up with other pitchers and catchers at the Dodgers baseball spring training facility, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

U.S. forces have boarded another oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea. The announcement was made Friday by the U.S. military. The Trump administration has been targeting sanctioned tankers traveling to and from Venezuela.

The pre-dawn action was carried out by U.S. Marines and Navy, taking part in the monthslong buildup of forces in the Caribbean, according to U.S. Southern Command, which declared “there is no safe haven for criminals” as it announced the seizure of the vessel called the Olina.

Navy officials couldn’t immediately provide details about whether the Coast Guard was part of the force that took control of the vessel as has been the case in the previous seizures. A spokesperson for the U.S. Coast Guard said there was no immediate comment on the seizure.

The Olina is the fifth tanker that has been seized by U.S. forces as part of a broader effort by Trump’s administration to control the distribution of Venezuela’s oil products globally following the U.S. ouster of President Nicolás Maduro in a surprise nighttime raid.

The latest:

Richard Grenell, president of the Kennedy Center, says a documentary film about first lady Melania Trump will make its premiere later this month, posting a trailer on X.

As the Trumps prepared to return to the White House last year, Amazon Prime Video announced a year ago that it had obtained exclusive licensing rights for a streaming and theatrical release directed by Brett Ratner.

Melania Trump also released a self-titled memoir in late 2024.

Some artists have canceled scheduled Kennedy Center performances after a newly installed board voted to add President Donald Trump’s to the facility, prompting Grenell to accuse the performers of making their decisions because of politics.

Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum says that she has asked her foreign affairs secretary to reach out directly to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio or Trump regarding comments by the American leader that the U.S. cold begin ground attacks against drug cartels.

In a wide-ranging interview with Fox News aired Thursday night, Trump said, “We’ve knocked out 97% of the drugs coming in by water and we are going to start now hitting land, with regard to the cartels. The cartels are running Mexico. It’s very sad to watch.”

As she has on previous occasions, Sheinbaum downplayed the remarks, saying “it is part of his way of communicating.” She said she asked her Foreign Affairs Secretary Juan Ramón de la Fuente to strengthen coordination with the U.S.

Sheinbaum has repeatedly rebuffed Trump’s offer to send U.S. troops after Mexican drug cartels. She emphasizes that there will be no violation of Mexico’s sovereignty, but the two governments will continue to collaborate closely.

Analysts do not see a U.S. incursion in Mexico as a real possibility, in part because Sheinbaum’s administration has been doing nearly everything Trump has asked and Mexico is a critical trade partner.

Trump says he wants to secure $100 billion to remake Venezuela’s oil infrastructure, a lofty goal going into a 2:30 meeting on Friday with executives from leading oil companies. His plan rides on oil producers being comfortable in making commitments in a country plagued by instability, inflation and uncertainty.

The president has said that the U.S. will control distribution worldwide of Venezuela’s oil and will share some of the proceeds with the country’s population from accounts that it controls.

“At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House,” Trump said Friday in a pre-dawn social media post.

Trump is banking on the idea that he can tap more of Venezuela’s petroleum reserves to keep oil prices and gasoline costs low.

At a time when many Americans are concerned about affordability, the incursion in Venezuela melds Trump’s assertive use of presidential powers with an optical spectacle meant to convince Americans that he can bring down energy prices.

Trump is expected to meet with oil executives at the White House on Friday.

He hopes to secure $100 billion in investments to revive Venezuela’s oil industry. The goal rides on the executives’ comfort with investing in a country facing instability and inflation.

Since a U.S. military raid captured former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump has said there’s a new opportunity to use the country’s oil to keep gasoline prices low.

The full list of executives invited to the meeting has not been disclosed, but Chevron, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips are expected to attend.

Attorneys general in five Democratic-led states have filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s administration after it said it would freeze money for several public benefit programs.

The Trump administration has cited concerns about fraud in the programs designed to help low-income families and their children. California, Colorado, Minnesota, Illinois and New York states filed the lawsuit Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

The lawsuit asks the courts to order the administration to release the funds. The attorneys general have called the funding freeze an unconstitutional abuse of power.

Iran’s judiciary chief has vowed decisive punishment for protesters, signaling a coming crackdown against demonstrations.

Iranian state television reported the comments from Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei on Friday. They came after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei criticized Trump’s support for the protesters, calling Trump’s hands “stained with the blood of Iranians.”

The government has shut down the internet and is blocking international calls. State media has labeled the demonstrators as “terrorists.”

The protests began over Iran’s struggling economy and have become a significant challenge to the government. Violence has killed at least 50 people, and more than 2,270 have been detained.

Trump questions why a president’s party often loses in midterm elections and suggests voters “want, maybe a check or something”

Trump suggested voters want to check a president’s power and that’s why they often deliver wins for an opposing party in midterm elections, which he’s facing this year.

“There’s something down, deep psychologically with the voters that they want, maybe a check or something. I don’t know what it is, exactly,” he said.

He said that one would expect that after winning an election and having “a great, successful presidency, it would be an automatic win, but it’s never been a win.”

Hiring likely remained subdued last month as many companies have sought to avoid expanding their workforces, though the job gains may be enough to bring down the unemployment rate.

December’s jobs report, to be released Friday, is likely to show that employers added a modest 55,000 jobs, economists forecast. That figure would be below November’s 64,000 but an improvement after the economy lost jobs in October. The unemployment rate is expected to slip to 4.5%, according to data provider FactSet, from a four-year high of 4.6% in November.

The figures will be closely watched on Wall Street and in Washington because they will be the first clean readings on the labor market in three months. The government didn’t issue a report in October because of the six-week government shutdown, and November’s data was distorted by the closure, which lasted until Nov. 12.

FILE - President Donald Trump dances as he walks off stage after speaking to House Republican lawmakers during their annual policy retreat, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)