Shohei Ohtani, also known as “Show time“, has been featured in the media almost daily in Japan and the United States – especially as his Los Angeles Dodgers head to the World Series, Major League Baseball‘s championship. Ohtani was nicknamed the “baseball’s largest export» in the United States, where debate rages over whether he is the best baseball player in history.
On the other hand, Ohtani, as a Japanese national, is frequently covered in newspapers, weeklies, television shows and blog posts in Japan. For example, the Japan Times has featured Ohtani since he moved to Los Angeles. Stated in 2018posting articles about him several times a week. Ohtani joined the Dodgers in 2024. Due to the time difference between Japan and the United States, his Dodgers’ games are broadcast in the morning in Japan, and Ohtani has contributed to an increase in the number of games. audience in his country of origin.
For baseball fans, it’s natural that such a talented player would attract so much attention. For many Japanese, Ohtani is more than a ball player: he is a national hero. Nakano Koichi, professor who teaches politics and culture in Tokyo at Sophia University, observed that “the idolatry of Ohtani in Japan reflects his own inferiority complex vis-à-vis the homeland of baseball, the United States”
As a Japanese fan idol, Ohtani has been overexposed in Japanese media recently, and Japanese audiences have become accustomed to his record breaking news daily, so-called audience fatigue has set in due to overexposure in the media. At the same time, however, Ohtani clearly has considerable information value for Japanese and American audiences.
Ohtani is a “unique”bidirectional“Baseball player who can perform and excel as a hitter and pitcher in the same game. His extraordinary two-way superstar talent attracted comparisons to Babe Ruth since the beginning of Ohtani’s career. Although he would not pitch in the 2024 season due to an elbow ligament injury, Ohtani is expected to recover from an elbow ligament injury. major surgery and return as a two-way superstar in the MLB next year.
Ohtani’s incredible talent is evident. In November of last year, he was named the American League Most Valuable Player for the second time in his MLB career. Additionally, Ohtani hit his 50th home run of the season on September 19 of this year, making him the first baseball player to reach 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. THE 50-50 registration is already considered a legendary feat, meaning Ohtani made history even during a year when he couldn’t pitch.
Despite his elbow injury, the Los Angeles Dodgers gave Ohtani a dollar700 million agreementa record contract, in December last year. Additionally, Ohtani’s income includes a number of transactions with his sponsorssuch as Japanese watchmaker Seiko, Fanatics, Topps and New Balance. Miyamoto Katsuhiro, professor at Kansai University estimated that Ohtani’s economic benefits to the Dodgers this year – his impact on “ticket sales, advertising and broadcast revenue” – amount to 116.8 billion yen ($783 million).
Ohtani’s skills and millions of dollars catapulted him to stardom, even by Los Angeles standards. In May of this year, the Los Angeles Times reported that Ohtani had purchased a modern mansion with five bedrooms, 6.5 bathrooms, a theater room, swimming pool, sauna, gym, basketball court and spa, in Los Angeles for $7.85 million. However, in July it was reported that Ohtani had decided to sell his new mansion for “privacy issues» after Japanese channels Fuji TV and Nippon TV revealed his address. Clearly, his media value as a celebrity has taken a toll on his private life.
Ohtani’s private life continued to attract attention. The MLB superstar’s Feb. 29 announcement of his wedding — Ohtani declined to say when exactly the wedding took place — stunned the Japanese public, the Dodgers and baseball fans around the world. Unsurprisingly, the Japanese media has feverishly covered his marriage and relationship with his new wife, Mamiko Tanaka, a former basketball player. Since then, the media have continued to be interested in Tanaka.
Unfortunately, Ohtani’s happy news about her marriage was followed by a major scandal centered around her performer, Ippei Mizuhara. In April, it was reported that Mizuhara had been charged with federal bank fraud. Mizuhara allegedly stole approximately $16 million from Ohtani’s bank account in order to cover his gambling debts. The betrayal of his interpreter – who was also a close personal friend of Ohtani – attracted even more attention, including from non-baseball fans.
As a Japanese national and one of the biggest sports stars in the United States, Ohtani served as a global baseball ambassador. Regarding achieving 50-50, US Ambassador Rahm Emanuel tweeted that “Japan’s record machine has done it again!” Congratulations to Shohei Ohtani on his incredible baseball achievement. A true global ambassador for the game.”
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel greets Angels baseball star Shohei Ohtani at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo on March 3, 2023. Photo by U.S. Embassy Japan.
Ohtani also uses his fame and wealth to benefit his homeland. For example, it was reported in November last year that Ohtani donated up to $60,000. youth gloves in 20,000 elementary schools in Japan. In January of this year, Ohtani and the Dodgers decided to make a donation $1 million to victims of a series of earthquakes on the west coast of Japan.
Likewise, Ohtani helps bridge the gap between Japan and South Korea by baseball diplomacy. A Korean journalist, Jeeho Yoo of Yonhap News Agency, called Ohtani “the most beloved Japanese athlete in Korea.” Given the historical legacy between the two nations, it is extraordinary that a Japanese athlete would become so popular in South Korea.
It is therefore no exaggeration to say that Ohtani made a personal contribution to strengthening Japan-US relations through “baseball diplomacy” – just like Babe Ruth, who once I put on a kimono during a tour in Japan. Baseball was the first introduced in Japan by Horace Wilson, an American English teacher in Tokyo in 1872. Since then, the 150-year history of baseball diplomacy between Japan and the United States has included big names like Hideo Nomo, Hideki Matsui and Ichiro Suzuki. Ohtani surpassed them all. As the World Series begins, Ohtani, as an ambassador of baseball, will continue to create more news values and contribute to strengthening cultural ties between Japan, the United States and the world.
