Tuesday marks 10 years of Japanese professional baseball Team Nippon-Ham Fighters took a major gamble in the first round of the inaugural Japan Professional Baseball (NPB) draft. Despite his reported public insistence on signing with an MLB team, the Warriors chose an 18-year-old talent.
Shohei Ohtani finally changes his attitude and goes with the fighters. The team and then-manager Hideki Kuriyama let him develop into a two-way player rather than just focusing on a pitcher or hitter.
The rest is history.
Ohtani became a superstar in five seasons with the Warriors, eventually bringing his talents to North America and signing with the Los Angeles Angels ahead of the 2018 MLB season . Since then, his star has risen only as a two-way pitcher and the Angels’ designated hitter. Ohtani won the 2021 American League MVP and is expected to be a finalist for the award in 2022.
Ohtani goes 15-9 with a 2.33 ERA on the mound with 34 homers and 95 RBIs with a .273 batting average .
Ben Verlander asks how Shohei Ohtani became a two-way player.
Unfortunately, the angels are not on Ohtani There wasn’t much success, as the team has missed the playoffs for the past eight seasons. On his return to Japan last week, Otani said he had a “pretty negative impression” of the team’s 2022 season.
Meanwhile, the Warriors will open their new 2023 stadium — which will feature a large mural of Ohtani and former combative Major League Baseball star Yu Darvish.
For the past 11 seasons, he has played for the Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres. He played a major role in the Padres’ surprise run to the 2022 National League Championship Series, running just eight innings in 25 innings while racking up 23 strikeouts in the playoffs.
Ohtani’s also the most recent theme is “Finding Shohei: An Interview Special”. Excerpts from the 60-minute documentary hosted by Ben Verlander of FOX Sports are shown below.
Ben Verlander discusses how Shohei Ohtani wanted to sit down with him for a special interview.
Finding Shohei: Ben Verlander returns to Otani’s old minor league in Iwate, Japan
Ben Verlander is back at the beginning of Shhei Ohtani.
Finding Shohei: Ben Verlander Explores Japan Baseball Hall of Fame
Ben Verlander Exploring Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame.
Looking for Shohei: Shohei Ohtani’s global influence and the popularity of Flippin’ Bats in Japan
Ben Verlander had a party at Tokyo Dome.
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