For some Japanese fans, Shohei Ohtani’s record-setting $700 million, 10-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers isn’t quite done yet.

Speaking on Sunday outside Tokyo’s famous Ginza retail neighborhood, baseball enthusiast Isshin Watanabe expressed his desire for Ohtani to participate in the World Series. “That’s my wish,” he ended by saying.

After Ohtani’s trade from the Angels to the Dodgers was announced in Sunday’s special edition of the Yomiuri newspaper, baseball fans all around Tokyo stood in line to purchаse the paper.

This contract may surpass the records held by Kylian Mbappé and Lionel Messi, two soccer superstars, as the largest in sports history.

This upcoming season, Ohtani will most likely not pitch after undergoing surgery that will prevent him from doing so. He will instead assume the role of designated hitter.

“I believe Ohtani will resume his dual role the following year,” fan Watanabe stated. In the coming year, I hope he dominates the home run chart.

Ohtani has become a national hero in Japan, the most famous athlete in the nation, thanks to his rise to the top of a sport that many Americans and Latinos admire.

An observer pointed out that the total player payroll for one Japanese professional team is less than Ohtani’s salary. As an example, he cited the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.

Speaking in Ginza as well, Yuto Manabe remarked, “That sounds like a dream.”

This will undoubtedly increase Ohtani’s profile with sponsors and advertisers who target the Japan market, in addition to the Japanese fans who have already been closely following him through various media.

Ticket sales, television income, and sponsorship deals are all driven by Ohtani, making him one of the most marketable athletes in the world.

I’m overjoyed. The announcement has been something I’ve been eagerly anticipating since yesterday,” Sho Sato, a nurse, remarked.

The entire baseball community has done the same.