When the renownedly reserved superstar of the Los Angeles Dodgers met with the media on Thursday for the first time since his unexpected marriage announcement late Wednesday night, Shohei Ohtani didn’t reveal many specifics about his spouse.

Ohtani, who first announced on Instagram, did not disclose his wife’s identity beyond describing her as “a normal Japanese person.”

At the Dodgers’ spring training facility in Glendale, Arizona, the 29-year-old stated, “We have fun together. We first met about three or four years ago.” “I was able to imagine us being together forever.”

Ohtani’s marriage sparked a media frenzy in Japan and received coverage from news organizations in the US, South Korea, and several European nations.

Ohtani, who is extremely private about his personal life, stated that the revelation was made at this time to minimize future distractions.

“I felt it was best to do it now and focus on baseball,” he stated.

On March 20, the Dodgers will play the San Diego Padres in Seoul to start the season.

“I think it’s best to do it before the season rather than during the season,” Ohtani stated. “A large number of documents needed to be organized. I intended to finish it sooner.”

Ohtani disclosed that he got engaged to his partner last year after they met in Japan. The two-time American League MVP expressed his desire to have children will eventually happen when asked about it.

In one of the most prominent transactions in MLB history, Ohtani signed a contract with the Dodgers, staying in Southern California, and he maintained that his partner had no influence over this decision.

Ohtani, who played for the Los Angeles Angels for his first six seasons, inked the largest-ever 10-year contract in North American sports history, a $700 million contract, with the Dodgers in December.

“Not at all,” Ohtani responded. “She values my viewpoint, and that is unrelated to baseball. That was unrelated to it, as my wife believed she would accompany me everywhere. The most important thing was where I wanted to play baseball.”

In Japan, the reaction to Ohtani’s declaration was largely enthusiastic. This included Hideki Kuriyama, who managed Ohtani with the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters from 2013 to 2017. When Kuriyama led Samurai Japan to the World Baseball Classic championship with Ohtani in the lead, the two got back together last spring.

Kuriyama told Sports Nippon, “I was so happy when I got the news from Shohei that ‘I’m getting married.'” From the bottom of my heart, I want to congratulate you. This seems like an opportunity to witness Shohei Ohtani in his true form.

“I’ve always wanted to provide Shohei with a setting where he can play baseball with everything he has since he joined Nippon Ham in 2013.” That extended beyond the playing field. (I’ve always wanted to) provide him with a setting where he can concentrate on baseball, including his personal life. Even now, nothing has altered. I advised him to find a suitable partner and get married as soon as possible when he transferred to the majors.

Everyone was taken aback by Ohtani’s announcement, even the Dodgers.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts expressed his happiness for him and his fiancée, as reported by the Associated Press. Regarding the wedding presents, we were taken aback and had little time to consider our options. It’s definitely on its way.

Pitcher Yusei Kikuchi of the Toronto Blue Jays, who went to the same high school as Ohtani, also congratulated him.

According to NHK, Kikuchi stated, “He was already the best player in the world; now that he has a family, he will become even stronger.”