Ohtani, who formed the 50-50 club en route to winning his first World Series title in 2024, returns to his home country for the first time in a major league uniform.
While he played on Japanese soil for the national team at the 2023 World Baseball Classic, Ohtani never had an opportunity to suit up in front of his own fans in his six years with the crosstown Angels.
Because he had off-season surgery on his left shoulder which he spent rehabbing back in the States, Ohtani had not been back to Japan after winning the World Series.
The Tokyo Series has completely taken over the Japanese capital, with Ohtani’s face plastered on billboards all over the city.
Not only were tickets to the four games snapped up in a heartbeat, more than 150,000 fans applied to purchase tickets for Friday’s official PRACTISE. Reports had tickets being auctioned for more than tenfold, soaring to 21,000 yen (130 euros).
Networks on Thursday carried a live broadcast of the Dodgers’ charter plane landing, as if Ohtani were a foreign leader scheduled to meet the Japanese prime minister for a summit. Fans nationwide flocked to the airport hoping to get a glimpse of the world’s best player.
Ohtani, along with his four compatriots on this tour, will hold a press conference on Friday to kick off the weeklong circus.
AloJapan.com