Shohei Ohtani's rural hometown honors its superstar son -- from city hall to the hair salons

OSHU CITY, Japan -- Shohei Ohtani's hometown successful bluish Japan is simply a agrarian place, celebrated for its high-quality Maesawa beef, its history of making traditional ironware and nan aggravated greenish hills and mountains that situation it.

Japanese telephone specified places “inaka” — astir translated arsenic nan “countryside.” No glitz, quiet streets and up northbound — acold winters. It's only 300 miles (500 kilometers) from Tokyo, but it seems further away.

These days, Oshu City is astir celebrated for Ohtani himself, and nan aggravated pridefulness section group show for 1 of nan game's top ever players. He started successful nan section Little League pinch nan Mizusawa Pirates, played for Hanamaki Higashi High School — a way that led him to nan World Series. His Los Angeles Dodgers lead nan New York Yankees 3-0, and fans present will beryllium tuned successful erstwhile LA tries to clinch nan title early Wednesday greeting section time.

The municipality honors Ohtani astatine each turn. And to acquisition it, commencement first pinch hairdresser Hironobu Kanno's salon called “Seems.”

The waiting room is simply a depository dedicated to Ohtani pinch astir 300 artifacts hung, stacked and squeezed into each corner. Even much items are successful storage.

There are signed Dodgers and Angels jerseys, twelve of autographed baseballs, bats, shoes, caps, gloves, bobbleheads, photos of Othani and his woman Mamiko Tanaka, shirts emblazoned pinch images of his dog Decopin (Decoy successful English), stuffed animals, pillows and life-size cutouts of nan superstar.

Kanno said galore fans travel to municipality connected a benignant of “pilgrimage," and his shop is often portion of that.

“My customers and those who travel to sojourn Ohtani’s hometown really bask seeing nan collection, and I deliberation it is simply a very effective measurement for them to consciousness person to Ohtani," he said.

The collecting began innocently erstwhile Kanno attended a shot crippled connected May 23, 2013 — nan first master crippled successful which Ohtani batted and pitched. This was for Japan’s Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, and Kanno came backmost pinch a shot signed by Ohtani.

“When I put nan shot pinch Ohtani’s autograph successful my salon, nan customers were very happy to spot it,” Kanno said. “So I started to cod equipment small by little.”

The remainder is history.

He said his astir treasured point is simply a headdress signed by Japanese players who defeated nan United States successful nan final of past year's World Baseball Classic successful Miami.

Kanno confessed that nan costs of Ohtani equipment keeps rising. He suggested he'd spent astir 10 cardinal yen — possibly $100,000 — connected Ohtani merchandise complete a decade, and guessed nan worth mightiness beryllium 5 aliases six times arsenic much.

He said he’d ne'er met Ohtani nor his mother and begetter — Toru and Kayako — and nan superstar has ne'er seen nan collection. He said eventually, he'd for illustration to spot it successful a existent depository and added he wasn't successful it for financial gain.

Head crossed municipality to nan metropolis hallway if you request much Ohtani memorabilia. One area is loaded pinch photos of Ohtani, newspaper clips and pennants reminding that he won nan American League MVP successful 2023 and 2021. He’s nan favourite to beryllium nan National League MVP this season.

The centerpiece of nan metropolis hallway postulation is simply a replica of Ohtani’s correct hand. The aureate manus allows you to grasp it and watch a video pinch Ohtani showing really nan replica was made.

Keigo Kishino and his woman Chiaki said they traveled successful 1 time from nan occidental metropolis of Osaka — by level and train — conscionable to shingle nan the hand.

“He is simply a root of power for me, aliases thing for illustration that,” Chiaki said.

Jeffrey Kingston, who teaches history astatine Temple University successful Japan, described Ohtani arsenic a “combo of axenic skill, pridefulness and nationalism that make him irresistible to nan Japanese public, and anyone remotely willing successful nan game, extending moreover to group who ne'er really cared astir baseball.”

His was referring partially to his woman Machiko Osawa, a professor of economics astatine Japan Women’s University. She is not a shot fan. But Othani sewage her willing — astatine slightest successful nan short term.

“Ohtani changed nan image of Japanese and helps transcend their analyzable feelings toward Westerners,” she explained.

“When I was young, location was a immense spread successful expertise betwixt American players and Japanese players. Japanese players are shorter and not capable to compete, but now Ohtani changed nan image of Japanese shot players. He is tall, fresh and a superstar.”

Ohtani is nan only MLB subordinate from Oshu City, though others person travel from nearby. Pitcher Yusei Kikuchi besides attended Hanamaki Higashi High School, and Rintaro Sasaki — nan boy of Ohtani's precocious schoolhouse coach — is simply a phenom who skipped master shot successful Japan altogether and presently plays astatine Stanford.

But nary 1 generates buzz backmost location for illustration Ohtani. Earlier this year, a section atom paddie was utilized arsenic an “artist's canvas” pinch Ohtani's image successful Dodger's bluish and wearing No. 17 — pinch Decoy alongside — trim into nan greenish field. The likeness if unmistakable.

Oshu Mayor Jun Kuranari talked astir Ohtani arsenic an inspiration, and nan atom paddie mightiness beryllium an example. He besides brought up Ohtani arsenic a domiciled model.

“He plays pinch specified a axenic heart, and his capacity is amazing,” nan politician said. "But what I deliberation is besides astonishing is that he is capable to enactment humble while playing truthful well. He is simply a domiciled exemplary for everyone, and besides makes nan locals proud.”

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This communicative has been corrected to show past year's World Baseball Classic last was successful Miami, not Tokyo.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB