8 things we’re looking forward to in 2024

As we close the books on a thrilling 2023 -- one that had so much going on, it seems like decades since everyone was all worried about the new rule changes -- we turn the calendar, of course, to '24. Not all the dust has settled, considering we haven’t gotten all these free agents signed yet. But some of the big names have found new homes, and many storylines have already emerged. The '23 season was fun. But '24 promises much, much more.

Here's a look at eight storylines to look forward to in 2024.

1. Shohei Ohtani in Dodger Blue
How could the biggest storyline be anything but this? The global superstar and two-time American League Most Valuable Player Award winner signed the biggest contract in sports history on Dec. 11 to play for one of the signature franchises in the game alongside two other MVP Award winners in Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts. (How many Hall of Famers is this team going to have?) Ohtani won’t pitch in 2024, which is a bummer but is considerably offset by the fact that, uh, he’s one of the best hitters in baseball. Ohtani, famously, has never played in a postseason game in the big leagues, but we saw what he did in the World Baseball Classic: He shines brightest on the biggest stage. The Dodgers are coming off yet another 100-win season in which they didn’t win the World Series -- they did not, in fact, win a postseason game. It’s all setting up to be another year of Ohtani. It’s his world. We just get to watch him in it.

2. Juan Soto in the Bronx
Even with Aaron Judge on the roster, the Yankees have felt weirdly small the past few years, haven’t they? After a gradual decline over the past decade or so, they finally fell through the floor last year, missing the postseason for the first time in seven years. Add that to their ever-expanding World Series drought -- more than half of baseball has been to the Fall Classic since New York was last there in 2009 -- and you’ve got a recipe for some serious urgency in the Bronx. Thus: Soto is here now, and a long-term contract could follow. The Yankees still need to figure out their pitching, and there are some unsettled spots on this roster. But bringing in Soto is a sign they know they need to win right now. Maybe they will and maybe they won’t. But when New York is desperate, big things happen -- one way or another.

3. The debut of Yoshinobu Yamamoto
There’s no question that Yamamoto -- who signed with the Dodgers on Wednesday -- is going to be one of the game’s primary attractions from his first start. He has been the best pitcher in Japan for years, he’s only 25 and he’s essentially getting paid like he’s one of the few aces in baseball from Day 1. Along with Ohtani, Yamamoto will change the face of Los Angeles -- and will make the Dodgers a must-watch club every fifth day.

4. A big year for the defending champs
We still haven’t had a World Series winner repeat as champions this century, and, well, the Rangers are the only team with a chance to do it this year. You don’t have to squint very hard to see how they might. Just about everybody who was part of that World Series run is back, and while Texas hasn't added to its roster yet, it has been in on a lot of potential additions. And we know two the club will be getting at some point in 2024: Cy Young Award winners Max Scherzer (who had surgery on a herniated disk on Dec. 14 and should return by June or July) and Jacob deGrom (who hopes to return from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow by August). Imagine having those guys healthy for your playoff rotation. There will be even more excitement in Arlington this season: Globe Life Stadium will host the All-Star Game as well.

5. Here come the Jacksons
There’s nothing quite like the arrival of a star in waiting, and we certainly had two in 2023 with Corbin Carroll and Gunnar Henderson. Fairly early in '24 -- maybe even on Opening Day -- we’ll see the arrival of the top two prospects in baseball, both named Jackson: the Orioles’ Jackson Holliday and the Brewers’ Jackson Chourio. They’re the obvious preseason Rookie of the Year Award favorites, but there are plenty of candidates, from Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes to Nationals outfielder Dylan Crews to Rays infielder Junior Caminero. Oh yes -- don’t forget still-technically-a-rookie Evan Carter, last seen helping the Rangers win their first World Series.

6. Baseball around the world … with a very special opener in Korea
The first fans to get to see Ohtani in a Dodgers uniform will be in Seoul, South Korea, at the Gocheok Sky Dome: That’s where the Dodgers will open the season on March 20 and 21 against the Padres, the first regular-season games in South Korea. But there will be plenty of games in other countries this year. Eleven days before the Seoul Series, the Red Sox and Rays will play two Spring Training games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. On April 27-28, MLB will return to Mexico City -- where the Padres and Giants played last year -- for a two-game set between the Astros and Rockies. And there are London games again, with the Mets and Phillies playing on June 8-9. You still have time to update your passports.

7. Spring Breakout to turn focus to prospects
March is going to be plenty busy. The week before the South Korea games, MLB will debut the first Spring Breakout, with each team fielding a roster of its best prospects to face off in exhibition games from March 14-17. The aforementioned Jacksons will be there, but there will be many prospects to watch … including your team’s.

8. Regular-season baseball at Rickwood Field
The oldest professional ballpark in the United States isn’t Wrigley Field or Fenway Park: It’s Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Ala., where the Negro Leagues' Birmingham Black Barons played -- including, at one point, a young outfielder named Willie Mays. On June 20 as part of Juneteenth celebrations, we’ll have an MLB game there between the Giants and Cardinals.