LOS ANGELES._ Come to the Dodger Stadium for a baseball game, stay for a guided tour in Japanese or to try the Takoyakia donut that the supplier Tsukiji Gindaco describes as “crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside, with carefully selected, elastic-textured octopus in the middle.”
This is the effect Shohei Ohtani.
As sensational as he has been on the field in his first season with the Dodgers — founder of the 50-50 club and the big favorite to win the MVP award National League — Ohtani has been equally important to the team’s brand and to Major League Baseball In general, according to the CEO of the Dodgers, Stan Kasten.
Of course, none of this is a surprise. The Dodgers They knew Ohtani’s value would go beyond his OPS and ERA when they agreed to the largest contract in sports history: a jaw-dropping, $700 million, 10-year deal that left everyone in Ohtani’s hometown in awe. , Mizusawauntil Chavez Ravine. Whoever signed it would obtain a huge return on investment in sponsorships, marketing and brand recognition worldwide.
“People always ask me about the numbers and I never tell them, so I won’t do it now,” Kasten said. “Your most important contribution is what you’ve done on the field, okay? He has had an extraordinary season.
“But it is true that off the field, it has brought new fans. The demographic mix in our stadium during games has changed. We have changed some of the marketing, changed some of the things we offer in the food establishments. We have a series of daily tours [en japonés] that we didn’t have before. “We have a number of new sponsors with Japanese connections that we didn’t have before.”
“But the most lasting contribution has been the combination of Shohei’s profile with that of the franchise. Dodgers. It’s baseball showing its best side. It has been a benefit for both us and Major League Baseballwho always looks for international opportunities. All teams benefit from that. “It has been enormously positive for everyone.”
Now, the next step for baseball’s biggest international superstar will be the biggest stage in the world. Big Leagues: The World Series.
That’s part of what made the competition for Ohtani so fascinating last winter. Teams always have expectations about jersey sales, tickets and other marketing opportunities when pursuing superstars in free agency, but given his unique brilliance as an MVP contender as a hitter and the Cy Young As a pitcher, in addition to his incomparable international appeal, Ohtani was a free agent the likes of which the sport had never seen before.
Los Dodgers They saw a lot of projections about what Ohtani could bring and made their offer accordingly. It turned out that they were wrong.
“In retrospect, maybe we should have foreseen all this, but we were conservative,” Kasten acknowledged. “He knew it was going to be great. It’s surpassed cool.”
That is reflected in the audiences. According to MLB, Game 5 of the Serie Divisional of the National League between Dodgers y Parentsstarring Ohtani and a showdown between the starters Yoshinobu Yamamoto of Los Angeles y Yu Darvish of San Diegoone of Ohtani’s childhood idols, was the postseason game of MLB most viewed in Japanwith 12.9 million viewers.
“I’m sure it’s not easy for people in Japan to be able to watch these games because of the time difference,” Ohtani said. “I hope to continue performing well for the fans in Japan as well.”
The manager of the Dodgers, Dave Robertssaid: “One of our guys told me how many people were watching that Game 5, which is mind-blowing. “It’s good for all of us.”
He was referring to all of baseball, since he was in a room with baseball officials. MLB and sports media from around the world.
But it has been especially good for the Dodgers.
“I think this is the 100th percentile result with Shohei,” Roberts added. “That’s just talking on the field, in the clubhouse. I can’t imagine what he’s doing outside of the game, on the business side.
“But on the baseball field, between the lines, I couldn’t have imagined a better season. And what a great person and teammate, too.”
