Letter #3: That baseball boy

I have been into baseball these days. MLB to be more precise, and Shohei Ohtani to be exact.

There are a bunch of Japanese people who don’t know who our prime minister is (we got a new one today btw). But it’s nearly impossible not to know this two-way player if you live in Japan. I mean, his name and face are literally everywhere. He’s definitely a star, but I don’t think he’s considered as an idol here. He’s more like a hero, a dream, and the nation’s beloved grandson.

To give you a glimpse of his status here:
– Every product Shohei participated in the ad has increased the sales.
– Just because he carried the paper bag of certain pastry shops (possibly it was a gift), one of them decided to open its branch in LA where he plays (so I heard, they don’t even have a Tokyo branch yet).
– When he donated gloves to every elementary school in Japan, my neighborhood school live-streamed its unboxing because the president thought it was too precious to open it by himself.
– When he achieved the unprecedented 50/50 (50 home runs & 50 stolen bases) this year, it became breaking news on TV, and the extras were handed at the station. A commemorated discount at the Takoyaki stores and more. And this too-good-to-be-true game was rerun on the national TV. 

So, of course, I knew who he was and how he’s been doing (because he’s always on the news). But after I saw Team Japan win the 2023 World Baseball Classic with dramatic games, I found myself constantly googling his name.

And this year, I found myself recording the games I can’t watch real-time, downloading the MLB app to track game results, and remembering the names of his teammates (now I like them all) and beyond. One of the great things about MLB is that they play almost every day during the season. For example, the Dodgers only had 3 days off this September. It must be grueling for players, but it’s happy months for fans and viewers. They made my days so much more exciting.

To my eyes, he’s a beacon of light. His news has been almost the only bright hope in the dreadful news. And every time he hits a home run or achieves something, it brightens my day and it reminds me of the power of steady efforts, discipline, dedication, and humbleness. These are the values traditionally cherished in Japan, and I think they are the reason he is so popular across all generations here, in addition to his feats. We see him as a role model of the Japanese, shining on the global stage.

On the global stage, our humbleness is often misunderstood as a weakness. A lot of Japanese people working internationally set aside this virtue to adapt and protect themselves. I’ve seen it happen enough, and I’ve experienced it firsthand. So, it’s so refreshing to see him still maintaining it with the smile of a baseball kid.

(That said, I don’t know him personally, of course. I guess he’s just a regular guy with all kinds of emotions, but he might have a loud swagger outside the field. Though I doubt it. )

I know you’re not into in baseball, but will you at least check out the video of his dog, Decoy doing the first pitch?

Have a wonderful week,
Setsuko