MLB's Opening Day Anime With Ohtani, Soto, Judge and Skenes

Who's superpowers will help their teams win this season?

To fans, athletes are superheroes. MLB has immortalized them as such in an epic anime celebrating the league’s 2025 Opening Day.

“Heroes of the Game,” directed by Hiroshi Shimizu, spotlights four MLB greats—Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers, the Pirates’ Paul Skenes, Juan Soto of the Mets and Aaron Judge of the Yankees. Each boasts a superpower as they face an unknown outcome for the new season.

“The path of legend is laid before them. Who will emerge victorious? The world awaits. And the journey begins,” says the ad from Wieden+Kennedy Portland.

The video is running on broadcast, streaming, social media and DOOH in Tokyo, London, Mexico City and NYC. 

Films for additional players are being developed to air throughout the season.

As part of the push, the plaza outside MLB’s Flagship Store will display life-size baseball cards of Ohtani, Judge, Soto, Skenes, Ronald Acuña Jr., Jose Altuve, Bryce Harper, Julio Rodríguez and Mike Trout.