The home run ball hit by Angels designated hitter Shohei Ohtani off countryman Yusei Kikuchi on Saturday is heading back to their old school in Japan.
“I’m proud that we could play at the highest level like this,” Ohtani said in Japanese. “I’m personally happy about that. But I think that, more than me, the teachers and instructors who guided us might be even happier.”
More moments like Saturday’s loom on the horizon. The Angels face American League West division rivals 19 times a year. Kikuchi is signed to a four-year contract that guarantees him $56 million through 2022 and can be escalated up to $107 million if club options are exercised. Ohtani, limited to designated hitting this year as he continues to recover from Tommy John surgery on his pitching elbow, is under Angels control through 2023.
Ohtani admired Kikuchi, a pitcher like himself, as a middle schooler. Kikuchi’s dominance captured national attention. When he arrived on campus, Ohtani was so sensational he commanded the same spotlight. The emergence of two once-in-a-generation talents put the previously ignored region on the map. “I thought children who play baseball in the Iwate prefecture might be looking forward to watching it, too,” Ohtani said. “So in that sense, I think it was really good.”
Four players from Ohtani’s high school have turned pro since his graduation. Another pitcher from a different Iwate high school waits in the wings. Senior Rouki Sasaki was clocked in April throwing a 101 mph fastball that broke Ohtani’s national velocity record. He is reportedly being scouted by about a dozen major league teams.
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