Dubai Telegraph - Ohtani hits home run in Dodgers' Tokyo exhibition game

EUR -
AED 4.011471
AFN 76.929235
ALL 99.449011
AMD 426.595758
ANG 1.96388
AOA 996.122496
ARS 1160.278962
AUD 1.725496
AWG 1.96603
AZN 1.861143
BAM 1.955781
BBD 2.200178
BDT 132.398683
BGN 1.955781
BHD 0.410796
BIF 3228.767893
BMD 1.092239
BND 1.454386
BOB 7.529925
BRL 6.275574
BSD 1.089689
BTN 94.716058
BWP 14.845852
BYN 3.566065
BYR 21407.887117
BZD 2.188778
CAD 1.57135
CDF 3141.280158
CHF 0.964175
CLF 0.026459
CLP 1015.359903
CNY 7.905464
CNH 7.90727
COP 4495.055301
CRC 544.394586
CUC 1.092239
CUP 28.944337
CVE 110.263904
CZK 25.119866
DJF 194.03807
DKK 7.491017
DOP 68.519319
DZD 145.321855
EGP 55.123452
ERN 16.383587
ETB 143.124177
FJD 2.502364
FKP 0.845634
GBP 0.843917
GEL 3.031007
GGP 0.845634
GHS 16.928714
GIP 0.845634
GMD 78.593593
GNF 9443.87602
GTQ 8.420032
GYD 228.355106
HKD 8.489718
HNL 27.947171
HRK 7.564634
HTG 143.33255
HUF 400.87825
IDR 17833.375506
ILS 3.980393
IMP 0.845634
INR 94.943624
IQD 1429.437592
IRR 45976.615776
ISK 146.967839
JEP 0.845634
JMD 171.522739
JOD 0.774441
JPY 162.342823
KES 141.409387
KGS 95.794908
KHR 4383.610559
KMF 494.204532
KPW 983.040876
KRW 1586.02424
KWD 0.336533
KYD 0.908251
KZT 545.554612
LAK 23664.520216
LBP 98031.340894
LKR 323.084759
LRD 218.39079
LSL 19.853692
LTL 3.225099
LVL 0.660685
LYD 5.261949
MAD 10.585252
MDL 19.836734
MGA 5104.466458
MKD 61.828133
MMK 2292.188524
MNT 3794.773108
MOP 8.743773
MRU 43.459497
MUR 49.329707
MVR 16.865752
MWK 1894.503095
MXN 21.773842
MYR 4.855169
MZN 69.7814
NAD 19.853692
NGN 1688.529282
NIO 40.207059
NOK 11.621866
NPR 151.981005
NZD 1.900803
OMR 0.420537
PAB 1.092239
PEN 4.00019
PGK 4.441174
PHP 62.507491
PKR 305.915796
PLN 4.199058
PYG 8665.962324
QAR 3.976159
RON 5.000019
RSD 117.710711
RUB 93.245691
RWF 1548.951784
SAR 4.096304
SBD 9.308972
SCR 15.832376
SDG 656.335223
SEK 11.07276
SGD 1.457597
SHP 0.858328
SLE 24.936225
SLL 22903.7098
SOS 623.874177
SRD 39.833886
STD 22607.144948
SVC 9.557496
SYP 14201.606877
SZL 19.853692
THB 36.715003
TJS 11.897462
TMT 3.819812
TND 3.371286
TOP 2.630278
TRY 40.011891
TTD 7.417132
TWD 35.984809
TZS 2896.903716
UAH 45.261551
UGX 4003.000924
USD 1.092239
UYU 46.518833
UZS 14127.24741
VES 70.420021
VND 27826.647785
VUV 134.501217
WST 3.089713
XAF 658.939376
XAG 0.03233
XAU 0.000366
XCD 2.95704
XDR 0.820862
XOF 658.939376
XPF 119.331742
YER 269.5464
ZAR 19.857567
ZMK 9831.466852
ZMW 31.24874
ZWL 351.700557
  • SCS

    0.2000

    10.99

    +1.82%

  • NGG

    0.8900

    63.21

    +1.41%

  • RIO

    1.8400

    63.04

    +2.92%

  • AZN

    1.0900

    77.6

    +1.4%

  • CMSC

    0.0500

    23.22

    +0.22%

  • RBGPF

    66.0200

    66.02

    +100%

  • CMSD

    0.1500

    23.35

    +0.64%

  • RELX

    1.1200

    48.93

    +2.29%

  • VOD

    0.0500

    9.55

    +0.52%

  • BCC

    2.9700

    99.35

    +2.99%

  • JRI

    0.0335

    12.83

    +0.26%

  • BP

    1.0200

    33.39

    +3.05%

  • GSK

    0.2600

    39.49

    +0.66%

  • BTI

    -0.0200

    41.36

    -0.05%

  • RYCEF

    0.0500

    10.4

    +0.48%

  • BCE

    -0.1990

    23.47

    -0.85%

Ohtani hits home run in Dodgers' Tokyo exhibition game
Ohtani hits home run in Dodgers' Tokyo exhibition game / Photo: Philip FONG - AFP

Ohtani hits home run in Dodgers' Tokyo exhibition game

Shohei Ohtani fever in Tokyo reached boiling point Saturday as the Japanese baseball superstar hit a home run in his first game in a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform in his home country.

Text size:

Ohtani is in the Japanese capital with the World Series champion Dodgers to open the Major League Baseball season with two games against the Chicago Cubs next week.

The 30-year-old was in action as the Dodgers beat Japan's Yomiuri Giants 5-1 in a warm-up game at the Tokyo Dome, which was packed to its 45,000-capacity rafters.

He gave the crowd what they were looking for, smacking a huge home run in the third inning.

"It was great to see so many fans at an exhibition game," Ohtani told reporters.

"It really made me feel like I was back in Japan for the first time in a while."

It was Ohtani's first game in Japan since he helped his country win the World Baseball Classic two years ago in Tokyo.

But it was his first ever appearance in an MLB uniform in his home country, having left Japan for the Los Angeles Angels in 2018 before joining the Dodgers in late 2023.

Yurie Sakamune, who was at the game with her husband Junji, told AFP that the couple had entered 10 times into a lottery to buy tickets and had paid 50,000 yen ($335) in total after snagging a pair.

"It's like a dream," said the 30-year-old, dressed in a Dodgers uniform with Ohtani's name and number 17 on the back.

"I've been working every day to see Ohtani and I've put up with all the tough times for this. It's become like a life goal to see him."

A huge cheer went up as Ohtani stepped to the plate to open the game, drawing a walk from Giants starting pitcher Shosei Togo.

He crushed the next pitch he faced, slamming a two-run home run into the stands.

"Shohei, to be quite honest, in the last seven years has represented almost single-handedly the people of Japan," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before the game.

"So for him to come back here in person, it's going to be an emotional night for a lot of people."

- Excitement building -

Excitement has been building for Ohtani's visit, with around 500 fans waiting for the Dodgers to arrive at Tokyo's Haneda airport on Thursday.

Thousands more paid 2,000 yen ($13) each to watch the team practice the following day, with Ohtani emerging for a brief work-out lasting about 10 minutes.

The slugger, who has been described as a modern-day Babe Ruth, gave fans more for their money against the Giants.

"It's really cool," said American Dodgers fan Michael Artukovic, who travelled from his home in San Francisco just to watch the game.

"A lot is going on in our country where we're becoming insular.

"It's great to see this where people from all over the world are coming to a baseball game in another country."

The Dodgers play another warm-up game against Japan's Hanshin Tigers on Sunday, before starting their two-game series against the Cubs on Tuesday.

The vast majority of fans at the Tokyo Dome were wearing Dodgers uniforms, although there was also a smattering of support for the Giants, Japan's most successful team.

Atsuko Onuma told AFP she was rooting for the Giants but said she had also come to see Ohtani.

She confessed she would have "mixed feelings" if he were to hit a home run.

"I want to see it but I also want to suppress that feeling," she said.

G.Rehman--DT