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Ohtani raced past the 50-50 milestone as he hit
three homes and stole two bases in a game during the 20-4 rout
of the Miami Marlins on Thursday, securing a playoff berth for
the Dodgers.
The news topped morning headlines, and “Ohtani-san” was the No.
1 trending topic of social media platform X.
There was also praise from the Japanese government.
“We would like to express our heartfelt congratulations on his
achievement of this giant record,” Chief Cabinet Secretary
Yoshimasa Hayashi said as he responded to the first question at
his regular news conference Friday. “We look forward to seeing
more successes from Ohtani, who has already achieve numerous
feats and pioneered new grounds."
Ohtani, who debuted in Major League Baseball in 2018 with the
Los Angeles Angels, has become Japan's national icon and pride.
Yu Tachibana, a 44-year-old office worker, was a lucky one to
get a copy of the special newspaper edition for her 18-year-old
son who plays baseball. She says nobody had thought a Japanese
player would so well a decade ago. “It is very encouraging," she
said, as she noted a saying where there is a will, there is a
way.
A wave of congratulatory messages were posted on social media.
“Japan’s record-making machine has done it again," U.S.
Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel said in his message on X.
“Congratulations to Shohei Ohtani on an incredible baseball
achievement. A true global ambassador of the game.”
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