TOKYO — Shohei Ohtani’s achievement of becoming the first major league player with at least 50 runs and 50 stolen bases in a season was met with more newspaper editions for fans to read on their way to work Friday morning in Japan.
Ohtani raced past the 50-50 milestone as he hit three home runs and stole two bases in a 20-4 victory over the Miami Marlins on Thursday, earning the Dodgers a playoff berth.
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The news topped the morning headlines, and “Ohtani-san” was the No. 1 trending topic on social media X.
It was also praised by the Japanese government.
“We would like to express our heartfelt congratulations on his achievement of this great record,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said while answering the first question at his regular press conference on Friday. “We look forward to seeing more success from Ohtani, who has already accomplished many things and pioneered new causes.”
Ohtani, who made his Major League Baseball debut in 2018 with the Los Angeles Angels, has become a national icon of Japan and pride.
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Yu Tachibana, a 44-year-old office worker, was lucky enough to get a copy of a special newspaper for his 18-year-old baseball-playing son. He says that no one ever thought that a Japanese player would be good ten years ago. “It’s very encouraging,” she said, noting the saying where there’s a will, there’s a way.
A wave of congratulatory messages have been posted on social media.
“Japan’s record-making machine has done it again,” U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel in his message to X. “Congratulations to Shohei Ohtani on an incredible baseball achievement. A true global ambassador for the game.”