Padres and Dodgers to open 2024 MLB season in Seoul

The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres will face off in Seoul on March 20 and 21 next year in the opening series of the 2024 major league season, the MLB and Major League Baseball Players Association announced Wednesday.

The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres will face off in Seoul on March 20 and 21 next year in the opening series of the 2024 major league season, the MLB and Major League Baseball Players Association announced Wednesday.

The two-game series will mark the first time that MLB regular season games have ever been played in Korea.

The series brings two of the most popular MLB teams in Korea to Seoul.

The Padres are the current home of former Kiwoom Heroes star Kim Ha-seong, who has seen significant success both at the plate and on the field since joining the San Diego club in 2021.

"Korea is a great baseball country with a rich tradition, passionate fans, and talented players, including current Padre and San Diego fan favorite Ha-Seong Kim," Padres CEO Erik Greupner said in a statement on MLB.com. "The Padres are proud to serve alongside the Dodgers as global ambassadors for the game of baseball with our historic 2024 Korea Series."

The Dodgers don’t currently have any Korean players on the books, but have previously been home to some of Korea’s biggest stars, including Park Chan-ho, Choi Hee-seop and Ryu Hyun-jin.

"The Dodgers have a long and proud history of helping to grow the game abroad, highlighted by our trips to Mexico, China and Australia. It's very exciting to add Korea to the list," Dodgers President Stan Kasten said in a statement. "I know our players are thrilled to put their talents on display in a country so rich with baseball tradition and talent, including former Dodgers Chan Ho Park, Hee-Seop Choi and Hyun Jin Ryu."

Padres infielder Kim also spoke about the opportunity to play in Korea with his big league side in a video shared by the San Diego club on Twitter.

San Diego Padres' Kim Ha-seong rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds on July 2. [AP/YONHAP]

“When I joined the Padres I never would have imagined that I would have the opportunity to represent the San Diego Padres and Major League Baseball in my home country,” Kim said. “I cannot express how happy I am to be able to play in Korea in a San Diego uniform.

“It will be a very special memory for me to invite my teammates, staff and coaches to our country and experience this great opportunity together. It would be appreciated if Padres fans from Korea came to support us. See you in Seoul.”

The MLB will also be making regular season stops in Mexico City, where the Houston Astros and Colorado Rockies will play a two-game series on April 27 and 28, and London, where the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies will face off on June 8 and 9.

A fourth international stop will be made in the Dominican Republic during the preseason, with the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays set to play a spring training series in capital Santo Domingo on March 9 and 10.

The 2024 series marks the second attempt by the MLB to visit Korea in recent years. Last year an exhibition series planned for November was canceled a few weeks before it was scheduled to be held \due to "contractual issues with the event promoter."

The big league did successfully bring its Home Run Derby X event to Korea in September last year, with KBO legends Kim Tae-kyun, Park Yong-taik, Jeong Keun-woo and Lee Seung-yuop joining a packed roster at Paradise Hotel in Incheon for the festival-like event.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]