The News
As Japan plunges into political chaos after its ruling party’s defeat in Sunday’s election, the public seems just as consumed by baseball games more than 6,000 miles away. The ongoing Major League Baseball World Series — featuring Japanese star Shohei Ohtani, who plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers — has packed bars and set viewership records in Japan, despite the time difference.
Japan’s most popular anime series delayed its broadcast to avoid conflicting with the series, and travel agencies are swamped with demand from fans hoping to attend the games in the US. The hysteria is driven by Ohtani’s immense celebrity at home: “Think of Princess Di’s coronation — multiplied by a million,” a Japanese baseball expert said.
AD