In Japan Shohei Ohtani is a national hero and marketer s dream

TOKYO – It’s hard to be ubiquitous in Tokyo, one of the largest cities in the world, but Shohei Ohtani has found a way. The Los Angeles Dodgers star seems to be everywhere – on billboards, on products, in television ads and news and entertainment shows and, of course, on the field when his games are broadcast live in Japan.

He might play baseball 8,855km away, but one of the first things people see when they deplane at Haneda Airport, the city’s international gateway, is a photo of the superstar in an ad for green tea.

Leaving the airport, one sees Ohtani’s boyish image on vending machines, in convenience stores and wrapped around trains coursing through the city. Last week, when Ohtani and his team landed in Tokyo to prepare for two season-opening games this week against the Chicago Cubs, the Dodgers announced yet another sponsorship – with Hakkaisan Brewery, a sake distiller based in Japan.

Major League Baseball (MLB) has had no shortage of stars over the years, but it has never seen a sensation like Ohtani, who is Japan’s answer to Babe Ruth, a rare player who can both pitch and hit at the highest level.

His return to Japan, where tickets to his games are going for as much as US$10,000 (S$13,300),has the feel of a coronation for a home-grown star who last season signed a record US$700 million contract and helped the Dodgers win the World Series.

In sports, money often follows success, and Ohtani’s success has created a windfall for himself, the Dodgers and the league. He has about 20 active sponsorship deals at any time, and the value of his deals spiked when he joined the Dodgers last season after six years with the Los Angeles Angels.

Rob Manfred, the commissioner of MLB,