Shohei Ohtani’s strikeout to teammate Mike Trout, which helped Japan win the World Baseball Classic against the United States on Tuesday night in Miami, will be remembered by many. The Japanese phenomenon already guesses that it will be one of his greatest memories at the end of his career. The description of the final withdrawal, on Japanese television, will also go down in history.
“It’s definitely at the top of my finest career moments,” commented the 28-year-old Japanese in an interview with the American network Fox Sports. It was a historic end to the game, an extraordinary scenario and situation. More than anything before, I enjoyed this tournament.”
“I didn’t expect him to be the last hitter of the game, I knew it was a possibility, but it’s still incredible,” Ohtani added of his final showdown against Trout, his teammate of the Los Angeles Angels. I have been playing with him for several years now. Watching him take to bat, I knew better than anyone how fantastic he is as a baseball player. I had to do my best to pull it off.”
In the press conference, Trout showed wisdom.
“As a baseball fan, everyone wanted to see it and he won the first round,” agreed the American, adding that he had probably lived the 10 most pleasant days of his life during this World Classic.
An inspiring message
Ohtani, who excels both on the mound and at bat, had delivered an inspiring message for his teammates before the start of this final won 3 to 2 by the Japanese.
“Stop admiring them,” he said. If you admire them, you cannot surpass them. We came here to surpass them, to reach the top. For a day, drop your admiration for them and just think about winning.”
“We knew they had superstars, batting first through ninth,” Ohtani said when asked to rehearse his speech on Fox Sports. All Japanese know them. But I didn’t want us to be passive, it is possible to show respect, but at the same time, you have to be aggressive and confident. This is what I wanted to tell my teammates before the start of the match.
Following the encounter, Ohtani expressed his wish that this victory could have a positive impact on young baseball players in Japan.