Cubs' Tokyo Series debacle give Reds leg up on competition ahead of Opening Day

The Cincinnati Reds are now two games up on the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central. While Opening Day is still over a week away, the Cubs' season began overseas this past Tuesday. Chicago was part of the Tokyo Series and lost both games to the vaunted Los Angeles Dodgers.

Now, there's no shame in losing to the defending World Series champions. Most pundits believe LA will be back in the Fall Classic this year. The Dodgers have three former MVPs (Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Shohei Ohtani) plus, Teoscar Hernandez, Tyler Glasnow, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the roster. That's an impressive group.

But Los Angeles upped their game this offseason and came to terms on a five-year deal with two-time Cy Young Award-winner Blake Snell and Japanese pitching sensation Roki Sasaki. The Dodgers are loaded and are going to be a difficult matchup for every team this season.

Cubs' Tokyo Series debacle give Reds leg up on competition ahead of Opening Day

But it wasn't so much that Chicago lost both games to Los Angeles, but it was how they lost. After having Yamamoto on the ropes early, the Cubs were shutout by the Dodgers bullpen in Game 1 of the Tokyo Series. Then, it wasn't until Jon Berti legged out a single in Game 2 that Chicago even recorded a hit in 30 combined plate appearances against Dodger pitching.

Sasaki was wildly erratic. The rookie was making his MLB debut in his home country, but that was little comfort, as Sasaki walked five Cubs batters. Yet he only allowed one hit, and Chicago's lone run off Sasaki came courtesy of a bases loaded walk to Kyle Tucker.

Speaking of which, the Cubs' new right fielder went 1-for-8 in the series while the cadre of Seiya Suzuki, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Michael Busch all went hitless. And don't forget, Betts and Freeman were absent from the Dodgers lineup for both games.

Now it's still very early, and it was just two games against a top-tier opponent. But outside of their star pitcher Shota Imanaga, the Cubs looked lost. Most experts are picking Chicago to take home the NL Central crown over the Reds this season. But after watching the first two games of the season, those same folks may want to rethink their vote.

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