People across Japan expressed elation, envy and expectations Feb. 29 after the surprise news that Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani has tied the knot with a Japanese woman.
“I am curious who she might be, but I’m sure she’s a good person if Ohtani has chosen her. I hope they’ll be very happy,” said Hinako Kon, 30, in Sapporo. She said she watched Ohtani many times when he played for the Pacific League’s Hokkaido-based Nippon Ham Fighters from 2013 to 2017.
News of the union came from Ohtani’s Instagram, in a brief post in which he wrote he has begun “a new life with someone from my native country of Japan who is very special to me.”
Some local fans admitted to more envious feelings. “I’m a guy and I’m jealous of his partner,” a man in his 30s said, adding that he hopes the 29-year-old’s marriage “can inspire him to even greater results.”
Speaking to reporters in Glendale, Arizona, where he is in camp with the team, the Major League Baseball star said he first met the woman three or four years ago in Japan and they got engaged last year. He kept secret the identity of his wife.
Based in the United States since 2018, the two-time unanimous American League MVP moved from the Los Angeles Angels to the Dodgers in December on a record 10-year, $700 million (\100 billion) contract. (Kyodo)
毎週届く！
