Shohei Ohtani touched down in Japan on Thursday night but was whisked away before any of the several hundred fans who made the trip to Tokyo‘s Haneda Airport could see him or any of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Baseball’s biggest star finally appeared on Friday afternoon at Tokyo Dome, where a sizable crowd showed up to watch the Dodgers practice ahead of the Tokyo Series. The fans got their first look at him just before 4:30 p.m., when he jogged onto the field to cheers from the stands.
The MLB season-opening matchup between the Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs will feature five of Japan’s biggest stars. Still, in many ways, the series feels like a celebration of Ohtani, who receives the vast majority of attention from fans and media.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” Ohtani said during a news conference while sitting between pitchers Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki. “Right now, I want to get over jet lag. There are not just these two, but the Cubs have (Shota) Imanaga and (Seiya) Suzuki. I want the Japanese fans to see the Japanese players play. Aside from the Japanese players, there are other world-class players, so I want the fans to enjoy the power and speed of the major leagues.”
The Dodgers and Cubs, who also practiced at the Big Egg on Friday, will each play the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers in exhibition games before facing each other in a pair of MLB regular-season contests.
“We're thrilled to be able to play two Japanese teams,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “That is, I think, just fascinating for us to see a different style of baseball, to learn about the stadium, to play in front of the fans for a couple days.”
Ohtani, who was leading Samurai Japan at Tokyo Dome during the 2023 World Baseball Classic the last time Japanese fans saw him up close, is coming off a historic season in the majors.
The Japanese star, who did not pitch in 2024 after having surgery on his right elbow in 2023, hit 54 home runs and stole 59 stolen bases to become the first member of the 50-50 club while also hitting .310 and driving in 130 runs.
"It's been a while since I've played in Japan,” Ohtani said. “I'm looking forward to playing against (the Cubs’) Japanese players, and also to playing against other great players."
Yamamoto will get the start for Los Angeles in the opening game against Chicago. The right-hander went 7-2 with a 3.00 ERA in his first MLB season in 2024.
“To play in the opening game at Tokyo Dome is a more special game than usual,” he said. “I just want to do my best to hold them down.”
Imanaga will toe the rubber for the Cubs in the first opening day matchup of Japanese pitchers.
“I feel the excitement in Japan,” Imanaga said. “I also feel a sense of responsibility and pressure. I’m sleeping well, so I can handle the pressure. I’m honored to be the opening day pitcher.”
Imanaga put up great numbers in his first MLB season, going 15-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 2024. He was 1-0 in two starts against the Dodgers, allowing three runs in 11 innings.
“They have a lot of great players,” Imanaga said.
Sasaki, who was posted by the Chiba Lotte Marines last December, will make his MLB debut in Wednesday’s game.
“I want to do my best to pitch my way,” Sasaki said. “I haven’t played against major leaguers yet (in regular-season games), so there are things I don’t know, but I want to concentrate on my way of pitching.”
The anticipation for the series is at a fevered pitch in Japan.
Tickets sold out quickly, and the demand for merchandise was so great that one of the official stores in Tokyo opened at 5 a.m. The big crowd in the stadium on Friday was there just to watch the teams practice.
“I think the media attention alone is one part of it,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “The other part is, I got a chance to see at the airport, all the fans that were there. But we went to a different terminal, so they did not get to see us, but just kind of seeing all the fans here welcome us to Tokyo is pretty ... kind of gives us the scale.”
The games are also a homecoming for Roberts, who was born to a Japanese mother in Okinawa.
“For me, it’s personal, because I get to also represent my mom's side of the family,” he said.
The Tokyo Series is the first opening series in Japan since the Oakland A’s faced the Seattle Mariners in 2019. The first opening games in Japan took place between the Cubs and the New York Mets in 2000.
"I have memories of watching major league games at Tokyo Dome on TV when I was young,” Yamamoto said. “I will be happy if I can have a positive impact on as many people as possible.
"I feel that a lot of people are looking forward to it, and I'm looking forward to it more than usual, so I want to be in the best condition possible."
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