Ohtani-mania sweeps LA as Dodgers battle for World Series title

As diehard baseball fans flock to watch the two biggest US cities battle it out for a World Series title, many are coming from across the globe to this Los Angeles neighbourhood because of one single player.

People here in the Little Tokyo suburb of LA call it the “Ohtani effect”.

Shohei Ohtani – the Los Angeles Dodgers’ star player - looms large over the historic neighbourhood, personified in a 150ft (45m) mural and his name emblazoned across jerseys worn by fans here.

Baseball may be known as “America’s pastime”, but its biggest star is from Japan. The player signed a recording-breaking contract to play this season - a whopping $700m (£540m) over 10 years - and the hype surrounding him has only grown, luring in new fans and new traditions in multicultural Los Angeles.

Business has boomed here. Tourists come from all over - including from the star’s home country.

“When Shohei comes to bat – they know if he hits the home run we start pouring sake shots,” says Don Tahara, the owner of Far Bar where dozens of TVs show Dodgers games. Home runs equal free rice wine - often to hundreds of fans.

That’s a lot of sake. Ohtani has hit 54 home runs during this regular season – although none so far in the World Series against the New York Yankees.

“It’s good for the Dodgers – maybe not so great for my pocketbook. But it’s meaningful, it warms my heart.”

Far Bar has been packed during the World Series.

Mr Tahara passed out mochi, a Japanese rice cake, decorated with the Dodgers’ logo and free margarita shots to honour Fernando Valenzuela, the Dodgers legend who recently died. The Mexico-born, left-handed pitcher is also being immortalised in a mural – across the river from Little Tokyo in Boyle Heights.

Splattered in paint, muralist Robert Vargas took a break from painting Valenzuela to watch the game at Far Bar. It’s hard to imagine Mr Vargas buying his own drink at Far Bar – in Little Tokyo he is possibly as beloved as Ohtani for immortalising the baseball star on the massive wall of the Miyako Hotel.

“I’ve been a Dodger fan my whole life,” says Mr Vargas, who says he painted Ohtani “in the spirit of representation”.

And the mural has become a popular destination for tourists from Japan who come by the busload to pose for photos with the artwork.

Takatani Kiuchi travelled from Japan to attend Game 2 of the series at Dodger Stadium in the heart of Los Angeles and he watched Game 3 from Far Bar with his friends. Dressed head-to-toe in Dodgers gear and Ohtani jerseys, Kiuchi met fans from around Los Angeles and the world.

“We are new Dodgers fans. From Tokyo. For us it’s more about the Yankees versus Dodgers – that means a lot more than the World Series.”

They were excited that the second game of the series also featured the other Japanese star on the team - Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, pitching six innings, allowing just one hit by the Yankees.

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Kiuchi last came to Los Angeles as a child 50 years ago and says he will definitely return to see the Dodgers play again.

“We came here to see this,” Kiuchi cheered as the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman hit a home run during Game 3 and the bar’s crowd erupted into cheers.

The city’s tourism board is also cheering. In 2023, there were 230,000 visitors from Japan to Los Angeles, a 91.7 percent increase from 2022.

And by year-end, the city is projected to welcome 320,000 visitors, says Bill Karz, the senior vice-president of brand marketing at LA Tourism. It’s still a drop from pre-pandemic levels, but tourism officials are celebrating the rise.

“The Ohtani effect is real,” says Karz. “It impacts our entire economy.”

That, he says, results in boosted hotel occupancy, ticket sales at area theme parks like Universal Studios and tours of Dodger Stadium, which has, in turn, increased the number of Japanese language tours it runs.

Even some devoted Yankee fans have jumped on the Ohtani bandwagon.

In a sea of Dodger blue, Vince Gonzales sported a black and red “Ohtani” shirt from the Japanese national team.

“Shhh, I’m a Yankee fan,” he whispered at the bar while mingling with tourists from Japan. “But more importantly, I’m an Ohtani fan because I have a passion for Japanese baseball.”

Far Bar erupted into cheers and “I love LA” blasted from the sound system when game three ended in a Dodger victory.

Robert Vargas – the muralist – wasn’t able to sneak away. A woman from Japan ran out of the bar to beg him for photos in front of the mural. He obliged and soon, there were dozens of people posing with him for photos and chanting: “Lets Go, Dodgers!”