⚾🇯🇵 The Two-Way Samurai: Shohei Ohtani at the 2023 World Baseball Classic - Part 1 ⚾🇯🇵

There are baseball players who can hit.

There are baseball players who can pitch.

And then there is Shohei Ohtani.

For more than a 100 years, young baseball players had been told that if they wanted to become truly great they would need to choose a path. A player could become a great pitcher, or a great hitter. But they could not do both. 

But Ohtani never seemed interested in choosing.

He believed he could do both.

And his journey would take him from a small town in Japan to the brightest stadiums in America—and eventually to one unforgettable tournament and a championship game when the entire baseball world seemed to stop and watch.

This is the first part of a two part story about Shohei Ohtani and the 2023 World baseball Classic.   

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Hello, sports fans, and welcome to Once Upon a Game, where the greatest moments in sports become unforgettable bedtime stories. Whether you're winding down after a long day, sharing a story with your family, or simply reliving the games that made history, you've found the perfect place to settle in. So get comfortable, close your eyes if you'd like, and let your imagination carry you field side, courtside, or rinkside, and into the biggest moments sports has ever seen. This is Once Upon a Game, and tonight's story begins now. There are some baseball players who can hit, and there are some baseball players who can pitch. And then there is Shohei Otani. For generations, young baseball players around the world have been told that if they want to become truly great at their sport, eventually they need to choose a path. A player could become a great pitcher or a great hitter, but they could not do both. But Shohe Otani never seemed interested in choosing. He believed he could do both. His journey would take him from a small town in Japan to the brightest stadiums in America, and eventually to one unforgettable tournament and a championship game where the entire baseball world seemed to stop and watch. The game would come down to the final at bat, where one pitcher and one hitter who were professional teammates would take the field that night as international rivals, carrying the hopes of two baseball loving countries with them. This is the story of Shohei Otani and the twenty twenty three World Baseball Classic. As a boy, Shohei Otani loved playing baseball, but he did not love only one part of it. He loved all of it. He loved throwing, running, and hitting. He loved the feeling of a baseball exploding from his bat, and he loved the feeling of a fastball zipping off of his fingertips. Even before the rest of the world knew his name, Shohei was different. And as he grew older, people began telling him that being different might be a problem for a baseball player. If you want to be a great pitcher, they said, focus on pitching. If you want to be a great hitter, focus on hitting. Choose one. But Shohei did not want to choose. When he arrived at Hanamaki High School, Shohei made it clear his ambitions were already enormous. His coach encouraged players to set specific goals. Instead of simply saying I want to be great, they were asked to imagine exactly what greatness would require. Shohei took the assignment seriously. He created a remarkable goal sheet, known as a mandala chart. In the center, he wrote his enormous goal to become the top draft pick in Japan's professional baseball league. Around that goal, he identified eight skills and behaviors that he would need to develop in order to reach that goal. Those areas were then broken down into dozens of specific actions he could take each and every day towards reaching his goal. It was almost as if the teenager had drawn a map to his own destiny, and then he began working towards it. He trained his body, he trained his mind, he worked on his swing, he worked on his pitches, he studied the game, he learned to control his emotions. And most importantly, he learned that a gigantic dream can be reached by taking small steps towards it each and every day. Each practice, each workout, each pitch, each swing, each game. He followed his plan. His skills and his mind improved, and he could feel his dream coming closer and closer. Shohei became a star on the Hanamake high school team. Scouts, not just in Japan, but around the world began to take notice. Here was a teenager who could throw a baseball a hundred miles per hour, and he could drive the ball out of the park when he hit it too. The boy who had been told to choose between two paths was showing he might be able to make his own. When Shohei was ready to enter professional baseball, he announced something that surprised the baseball world. He wanted to play in America. Shohei wanted to go directly from Japanese high school to Major League Baseball in the United States. It was an astonishing dream. Several Major League teams even showed interest. But they also had questions. Most teams did not think the teenage Shohei could master both pitching and hitting at such a high level. If he came to the United States, he would have to focus on one skill in the minors before reaching the big leagues. But then, Shohei was given another option. The Hokido Nihonham Fighters of Japan's professional league said he could stay here and do both. And that decision changed everything. With the fighters, Shohei became an instant star in Japan, and he became what baseball had rarely seen. One player who could dominate on the mound and at the plate. The fighters also taught young Shohei how to be a pro. He learned how to prepare his body. He learned how to recover. He learned how to study opposing hitters while also studying opposing pitchers. He learned how to survive the demands of both jobs, and gradually the impossible began to look normal. Shohei could stand on the mound and throw the baseball a hundred miles per hour. Then he could step into the batter's box and hit one over the fence. He was one player doing the work of two. He became an all-star. He led his team to a Japanese League Championship and was named the league's most valuable player. He was one of the most famous athletes in his home country, but his time as a Japanese pro was coming to an end. After four years of professional play in Japan, Major League Baseball in the United States was calling. Shohei would now cross an ocean to continue his baseball journey. Teams from across Major League Baseball fought to have Otani join their team. Shohei decided to join the Los Angeles Angels. Otani arrived in LA ready for his next challenge. He would be on the same team as one of the greatest baseball players in all of baseball, outfielder Michael Trout. Mike had already won two MVPs of his own when Shohei joined the Angels and was considered one of the greatest baseball players of all time. Angels fans had high expectations. Could Trout and Otani lead their team to a championship? They were already calling Shohei Otani Showtime as a nickname. Like a new Hollywood movie, the fans were ready to line up and watch Otani and his skills put on a show in one of the world's greatest entertainment cities. It was a lot of pressure. But that was not all. Otani's baseball skills may be different, but everything in the United States was different for Shohei. It was a different country, the language was different, the culture was different, the travel was different, the attention and criticism was different, and he was far away from his friends and family. It was a lot for a young player to handle. But on the field is where Shohei thrived. He pitched his first MLB game on april first, twenty eighteen, and he got the win. Two days later he hit his first home run. The next game he hit another. And then another in the next game. Three games, three home runs. A few days after that, he pitched again, and he didn't just get the win this time, he almost pitched perfectly. For the first seven innings, he struck out twelve batters and didn't allow a single hit. One week, three homers, two pitching wins. Shohei's MLB career was off to a tremendous start. His alleging continued to grow. By the end of his first MLB season, he was voted the rookie of the year. Three years later, he was voted the most valuable player in the entire American League. Mike Trout also added another MVP award of his own during that time. The Angels had two of the biggest stars playing on the same team. But Shohei had become something baseball had almost forgotten was possible. A true two-way superstar. But while Shohei and Mike Trout piled up individual fame and awards, they were reminded that baseball is a team sport. The Angels still struggled to make the playoffs, and it had been a long time since Otani had competed for a championship. To do that, he would cross the ocean again with the hope he could deliver a championship not just to a team, but to his entire home country. The 2023 World Baseball Classic was about to begin. Like the Olympics, the World Baseball Classic is an event where players play for their home country. It only happens every three years, but when it does, countries around the globe assemble their best baseball talent to compete. The most talented baseball countries can put together a team of full-time professional players, including some of the biggest stars in Major League Baseball. Other countries need to rely on local, part-time players who have other jobs but still love to play baseball just as much. The tournament is hosted at stadiums around the globe before culminating in a championship game in the United States. One of the host countries was Shohei Otani's homeland, Japan. The last time Shohei had played for Japan, he had been only 21 years old. Now he was 28. He had become one of the most famous athletes in the world. And now he was back home, wearing the uniform of the national team, Samurai Japan. There was something different about wearing the Japanese uniform and playing in front of his friends and family. When Otani walked into the Tokyo Dome for Japan's first game of the tournament, more than 41,000 people had filled the stadium. When his name was announced, the roar of the crowd was in warnings. Then Shohei walked to the mound. The war became quiet. For a moment, everyone waited. Then came the first pitch. The world baseball classic had begun. Japan's first opponent was China, and Otani immediately showed why everyone had come to see him. He threw fastballs that reached 100 miles per hour. He struck out five batters. He allowed only one hit in four innings. But that was only half the story, because Otani also had the bat in his hands. In the fourth inning, with runners on first and second, and Japan leading one to nothing, Shohei came to the plate. With a mighty swing, he drove the ball into the gap. It rolled deep into the outfield. The runners raced around the bases and scored, while Shohei ended up standing on second base. Japan had taken a three to nothing lead. Shohe finished the night with two hits, two walks, two runs batted in, and was the game's winning pitcher. Japan won eight to one. The first chapter of the adventure belonged to the two-way samurai. Japan's team was dominant and loaded with talent. They easily won all four of their opening round games, defeating the countries of China, South Korea, Czechia, and Australia. Shohei shined in each game as a hitter, racking up hits and driving in runs. In the game versus Australia, he gave his Japanese fans exactly what they had been waiting to see. Otani came to the bat in the first inning, with two runners on base. On the second pitch he saw, Shohei unleashed a smooth but mighty swing. As soon as the ball left the bat, there was no doubt about where it was going. The ball soared through the air. The crowd leapt up and roared, and the ball was still flying. Shohei had smashed a towering home run. It landed 448 feet away, near the back of the right field stands. It went so far that it nearly hit a massive video board displaying Shohei's picture at the back of the stadium. Flags waved, music played, and fans cheered as Shohei rounded the bases. Japan led 3-0. As it turned out, that would be all the offense Japan would need, as they went on to win 7-1. Shohei's skills would continue to wow fans as the tournament continued. However, one of the tournament's most memorable moments was not one of Otani's blazing fastballs or towering home runs. It was actually a moment when he failed. Japan was playing the country of Czechia. Baseball is not a major sport in that country. In fact, for many of their players, baseball was not even their main job. They were firefighters, teachers, doctors, and other everyday workers who played baseball in their free time while holding regular jobs like everyone else. Pitching for Chechia against the mighty samurai would be an electrician named Andre Satora. He would be facing Japan's full lineup of professional players, including Shohei Otani. In the third inning, with one out and a runner on second, Andre the electrician watched from the mound as Shohei Otani, the greatest baseball player in the world, stepped into the batter's box. Shohei had been throwing baseballs over 100 miles per hour since he was a teenager in high school. Andre's fastest pitches as an adult barely reached eighty miles per hour. He would have to pitch carefully. Andre threw his first pitch to the outside. Shohei watched it pass, but as it did, it had crossed over the edge of home plate. Strike one, the Empire yelled. Andre pitched again, same spot, low, slow and away. This time Otani swung and missed. Strike two. Then came the pitch nobody expected. A slow change up, just seventy two miles per hour. Shohei swung. The ball bounced off the dirt before it even crossed home plate. Strike three the umpire yelled. Otani, one of the greatest hitters in the world, was left spinning in the batter's box with his helmet falling off his head. Three pitches, three strikes. Otani was out. The Czech dugout exploded with cheers. On the mound, Andre Sator could not hold back his smiles. Even the Japanese crowd applauded, because sometimes the best part of sports is discovering that anyone at any time might make the greatest play of their life and become part of the story. Japan eventually won the game 10 to, but all anyone wanted to talk about was Andre Satora, the everyday electrician who had struck out the greatest player in the world on three straight pitches. He was the highlight of the game. And Otani realized it. He was not angry or embarrassed, he understood that even though Japan had easily won the game, this was Andre's moment to shine. After the game, Shohei met with Andre. The Czech team had autographed a jersey for Shohei. He accepted it gratefully and took pictures with Andre. Later, while he was traveling, Shohei was seen wearing a team Czechia hat. He respected the players who had crossed the world to play the game they loved. And the mighty samurai reminded everyone of an important lesson. Never underestimate the underdog. The tournament was over for the Czechs, but Japan still hoped they had a lot of baseball left to play. Up next would be the knockout round, where the competition would get harder and the games would get closer. This concludes part one of our two-part story on Shoheiotani at the 2023 World Baseball Classic. In the next episode, you'll hear about the knockout round as Samurai Japan continue their quest for a world baseball championship and the legendary bat between two Angels teammates that would decide it all. You can jump into episode two right now or save that for another bedtime. But whatever you do, we hope you'll join us again here on Once Upon a Game. Before we go, we have a quick message for the grown-up listeners in our audience. Our Once Upon a Game social media pages on Facebook and Instagram are now active, and we would love to hear from you. If you would like to have your own young athletes' athletic achievements featured at the start of one of our upcoming episodes, please subscribe and leave us a short message with their name, their sport, and what they've recently accomplished so that we can highlight some of our listeners in upcoming episodes. Please also consider following, subscribing, or leaving a review wherever you get your podcasts or on our social media pages. 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