Ohtani Makes South Korean Fans Forget Rivalry With Japan
March 20, 2024
Ohtani Makes South Korean Fans Forget Rivalry With Japan
4 comments
Shohei Ohtani is a soft-spoken, 6-foot-4 powerhouse. He is a unicorn: one of baseball’s best hitters and pitchers, the first to dominate both in nearly a century. He might one day be considered the greatest ever to play the game.
He’s also from Japan, the former colonizer of South Korea. The nations’ relationship is still marked by tension and intense rivalry. But that hasn’t stopped South Korean baseball fans from idolizing a fellow East Asian player whose achievements are so rare, they nearly defy imagination.
Fans say they admire his blend of understated charm and herculean athletic prowess, which earned him a record $700 million to play with the Los Angeles Dodgers for 10 years.
When he landed in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday for a series of games that will open the MLB season, he was greeted at the airport by a crowd resembling one that might arrive for a K-pop idol.
“It doesn’t matter if he’s from Japan,” said Yoo Jee-ho, a veteran South Korean sports journalist. “If you’re a baseball fan, you appreciate that kind of talent.”
For what’s being billed as the Seoul Series at Gocheok Sky Dome, tickets rapidly sold out to see the 29-year-old phenom play for his new team, the Dodgers. The series will include the first regular season MLB games in South Korea, with the Dodgers playing the San Diego Padres on Wednesday and Thursday.
I was at the games. Lots of Koreans wearing #17
As someone who has spent significant time in each of the big three East Asian countries (China, Japan, Korean), it’s about damn time. Time to realize 95% of the population wasn’t alive when any of “the history” happened. Glad to see sportsmanship making some of the biggest strides towards burying the hatchet. Stupid sexy Shohei
The announcers made a weird comment about their history as nations too. I just don’t think people are thinking about war or international history when you’re watching baseball. In terms of any baseball rivalry… this was MLB not team Korea vs team Japan so I really don’t think that’s at the forefront of anyone’s mind here either. Weird issue to keep bringing up as if they’d all get together as a stadium to boo Ohtani? Or anyone?
4 comments
Shohei Ohtani is a soft-spoken, 6-foot-4 powerhouse. He is a unicorn: one of baseball’s best hitters and pitchers, the first to dominate both in nearly a century. He might one day be considered the greatest ever to play the game.
He’s also from Japan, the former colonizer of South Korea. The nations’ relationship is still marked by tension and intense rivalry. But that hasn’t stopped South Korean baseball fans from idolizing a fellow East Asian player whose achievements are so rare, they nearly defy imagination.
Fans say they admire his blend of understated charm and herculean athletic prowess, which earned him a record $700 million to play with the Los Angeles Dodgers for 10 years.
When he landed in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday for a series of games that will open the MLB season, he was greeted at the airport by a crowd resembling one that might arrive for a K-pop idol.
“It doesn’t matter if he’s from Japan,” said Yoo Jee-ho, a veteran South Korean sports journalist. “If you’re a baseball fan, you appreciate that kind of talent.”
For what’s being billed as the Seoul Series at Gocheok Sky Dome, tickets rapidly sold out to see the 29-year-old phenom play for his new team, the Dodgers. The series will include the first regular season MLB games in South Korea, with the Dodgers playing the San Diego Padres on Wednesday and Thursday.
I was at the games. Lots of Koreans wearing #17
As someone who has spent significant time in each of the big three East Asian countries (China, Japan, Korean), it’s about damn time. Time to realize 95% of the population wasn’t alive when any of “the history” happened. Glad to see sportsmanship making some of the biggest strides towards burying the hatchet. Stupid sexy Shohei
The announcers made a weird comment about their history as nations too. I just don’t think people are thinking about war or international history when you’re watching baseball. In terms of any baseball rivalry… this was MLB not team Korea vs team Japan so I really don’t think that’s at the forefront of anyone’s mind here either. Weird issue to keep bringing up as if they’d all get together as a stadium to boo Ohtani? Or anyone?