Shohei Ohtani Acknowledges Fans in Japan Watching Dodgers Postseason
The Shohei Ohtani effect has seeped into the MLB postseason.
The 2024 MLB postseason has drawn significant increases in viewership, and it’s hard not to chalk at least some of that up to the popularity of the Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter, who is arguably the most exciting player in baseball.
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FOX and FS1 saw the highest National League Division Series viewership numbers since 2015, bringing in nearly 4.1 million viewers. Viewership for the Division Series was up 18.8 percent from 2023, and the highest since 2017, per MLB Communications. The Dodgers’ Game 1 NL Championship Series victory over the New York Mets then drew nearly 8.5 million viewers, the most for FOX Sports since 2009.
These high numbers of viewers has not been limited to United States fans. Game 5 of the NLDS between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres drew nearly 13 million viewers from Japan. Game 1 of that series brought in 9.1 million viewers from Japan, per MLB Communications.
Plenty of Japanese fans tuned in to watch Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, both former NPB Pacific League MVPs, play in their first MLB postseason games. Even more Japanese viewers tuned in for Game 5 of the NLDS, which saw Ohtani, Yamamoto, and former NPB pitcher Yu Darvish all play. Darvish got the best of Ohtani through the series, but Yamamoto had the better Game 5 as the Dodgers earned the series victory.
Ohtani acknowledged the fans from Japan tuning in watch the MLB postseason, even with a major time zone difference.
“I’m sure it’s not easy for the people in Japan to be able to watch these games because of the time difference,” Ohtani said. “But Yoshinobu pitched really well. We’ve been playing really well. And I hope to continue to perform well as well for the fans in Japan.”
Ohtani has delivered for the Japanese fans on multiple occasions this postseason. Now, he’s four wins away from an elusive World Series title.
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Photo Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
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