Japanese baseball fans got to experience the Los Angeles Dodgers and their superstar Shohei Ohtani on their doorstep at an exhibition held by the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise in Tokyo on Wednesday (March 5).
From floor to ceiling, players' home runs, highlights, and motion graphics were showcased across three different walls with music and sound in an exhibition room, for the visitors to feel the excitement inside the Dodger Stadium.
"It reminds of the memories I have in the Dodger Stadium, so it's very interesting to see this exhibition here," said Shunichi Tsutsui, a 66-year-old fan of Shohei Ohtani who flew across the ocean to see Ohtani practicing in the training camp last week.
Featuring some valuable artifacts that have never been on display before, including game-used jerseys, cleats, and bats, as well as the championship trophy and other awards, the exhibition celebrates the 2025 MLB season which kicks off with the defending champion Dodgers facing the Chicago Cubs at Tokyo Dome on March 18.
This is the first time that the Los Angeles Dodgers have brought the authentic LA experience directly to fans overseas, said the Dodger's business analyst.
"This exhibition for us is an opportunity to bring the excitement and the environment of Dodger Stadium, which is unlike anything else, out here to our incredible fans in Japan. So we want (people) to feel the history, the excitement of a World Series walk-off grand slam, what it was like to see and feel the uniforms back in the days of the Brooklyn Dodgers all the way through their championship pedigree to today's team, we want people to be able to live and feel that," said Michael Spetner, the vice president of Dodger's business strategy and analytics department.
The Dodgers' Japanese trio, Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki, are expected to be on full display in front of more than 43,000 fans at the opening game on March 18.
(Production: Irene Wang)