Shohei Ohtani was unanimously named MVP of the National League, causing great celebration in Japan. Despite elbow surgery, he hit 54 home runs this season and is being honored by Japan Post with a limited series of stamps.
Japanese baseball passion reached a new height Friday morning when news broke that Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers was named the National League’s Most Valuable Player (MVP). The Baseball Writers’ Association of America awarded all 30 first-place votes to Ohtani, who was unanimously named MVP for the third time after 2021 and 2023.
At the same time, Aaron Judge from the New York Yankees was honored to be named MVP of the American League, also by a unanimous vote. In Tokyo, newspaper publishers handed out copies with big headlines and striking photos of Ohtani’s recent games to a packed crowd around a busy train platform station. “He is our pride,” said 60-year-old pensioner Sachie Tsujimura joyfully.
The 20-year-old student Yoshio Inoue, who had waited an hour for the extra editions, also expressed his opinion. “Honestly, I think he’s amazing,” he confessed, holding a newspaper with distinctive red and yellow lettering. Television channels in Japan, including public broadcaster NHK, interrupted their programming to cover the sporting event.
Ohtani’s achievements are now a fixture on the morning news and delight more than just die-hard baseball fans. 32-year-old engineer Kohei Nakamura said admiringly: “I think more Japanese players will learn from Ohtani.” At the same time, government representative Yoshimasa Hayashi also expressed his appreciation and was optimistic about Ohtani’s future successes.
To celebrate Ohtani’s success, Japan Post will release a limited series of stamps available at post offices and online. The series consists of five stamps, as well as a binder and a towel that shows the statistics of all batting attempts and home runs for the current season. The price is 7,260 yen per set.
Ohtani, widely considered one of the greatest two-way players in baseball history, signed a record 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers late last year. He was unable to pitch this season due to elbow surgery, but he excelled with an impressive 54 home runs and 59 stolen bases.
2024-11-22 08:19:00