The Los Angeles Dodgers are heading to Japan for their Tokyo Series against Chicago Cubs which will start from March 18 and conclude on March 19th. It will be the first time that their three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani will play on his homeland after signing for the LA Dodgers.
What was Shohei Ohtani’s message for his fans in Japan?
The Dodgers superstar first came in light during his time at Hokkiado Nippon-Ham Fighters in the NPB as he will feature for the first time in Japan since the time he signed for the Dodgers.
Ohtani took to his social media to post a video of himself with his dog, Decoy along side him as he expressed his excitement after landing in his homeland. He posted a video on Instagram and captioned the post,
I’m back.
Because of Ohtani’s presence in the first game against the Chicago Cubs, large amount of crowd is expected for the game that takes place at the Tokyo Dome. Not just Ohtani, but two other fellow Japanese teammates also feature in the squad that includes Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the new signing, Roki Sasaki. It will also mark their first time playing in their own backyard since signing for the Dodgers.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto joined the Dodgers last offseason and registered a strong rookie campaign. He too shared his excitement of playing on the Opening Day in Japan as he will share the mound with Shota Imanaga.
Obviously, all the Japanese fans must be really excited to have us back in our native country, Yamamoto said via interpreter Yoshihiro Sonoda. What we can do for them is get ourselves ready as much as possible and perform the best over there for them.
Los Angeles Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman on life experience perspective
The Los Angeles Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman lauded the connections the team has made with Japan and is thrilled to witness the large amounts of crowd when the team takes on Cubs on Tuesday.
I think the atmosphere is going to be electric, Friedman told The Japan Times. I can’t wait to experience this just from a life experience perspective. I have said that I think it’s the closest I’ll ever get to traveling with the Beatles, Friedman said.
I think there's going to be hysteria and so much excitement around our players and the connections that were made in Japan with our players and how locked in so many people in Japan were for that, Friedman concluded.
While Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki will take the mound for the Dodgers for the very first time in the two-game series, Shohei Ohtani will continue his role as a hitter for the team.