Shohei Ohtani Appears at Dodgers Fan Appreciation Event! The determination behind his smile and his unwavering desire to be on the mound for the WBC

Manager Roberts himself publicly stated, “I’m not going to throw…

Shohei won’t throw.”

On February 1 (Japan time), the fan appreciation festival “Dodgerfest,” held in mild weather, suddenly became tense. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts (53) announced that Shohei Ohtani (31) would not pitch in the WBC.

Ohtani pitched a full season in the last WBC, but injured his right elbow that year. It is natural for a baseball team to not want Otani to pitch in this year’s tournament,” said a reporter who covers the majors.

The Athletic, an American sports website, pointed out that the insurance issue was behind the decision not to pitch in the WBC. The so-called “WBC insurance” is a system under which insurance companies pay the annual salary of players injured during the tournament. Most predicted that the insurance would not cover a pitcher who had just returned from an injury.

On the same day, however, Ohtani smiled at fans and chatted with his colleague Freddie Freeman (36) and others (second photo), and when interviewed by the press, he was vague, saying, “I don’t know [about pitching] yet. Why? Former major leaguer Keiichi Yabu explains.

If Ohtani, who is a two-sport athlete, declares before the tournament that he will not pitch, it will affect the morale of the Samurai Japan team. Also, the fact that Otani, who pitched in the final inning of the final game against the U.S. in the last tournament and became the pitcher to pitch the final game, will be behind him again in this tournament will change the way the other team perceives him.

If even for a moment the thought crosses the minds of the opposing team that “Otani might pitch in the final inning,” it will lead to impatience, and impatience will lead to mistakes. Although it is unclear whether he will actually pitch or not, he must have anticipated this psychological effect and made his statement with an implication. Powerful countries like the United States and Dominican Republic are more afraid of Otani than Japanese baseball fans imagine.

As long as he has not declared that he will avoid pitching, there is still a possibility that he will pitch, even if the probability is low. And his attitude of never neglecting his preparations as long as there is a chance left has made Otani a star.

If he were to express his willingness to pitch, it would not be surprising if he pitches one inning only, as he did in the last game, as the guardian of the final. However, in the unlikely event that the game goes into extra innings, he would not be able to return to the DH. It would be a big gamble to pitch in the game.

Still, there are cases where his wish can be fulfilled if he says he wants to pitch responsibly, as Yoshinobu Yamamoto (27) volunteered to pitch in consecutive games in last year’s World Series. I don’t think Ohtani will give up that chance so easily.

In the previous tournament, the majority of baseball fans were of the opinion that Otani would not pitch in the final round to prevent injury, but in fact, he was the pitcher to pitch in the final round. However, in fact, Otani became the pitcher to pitch in the final round.

The words “It depends on the adjustments until the end” that Ohtani said at the Fan Appreciation Party may hide his unwavering desire to be on the mound for the WBC.

From the February 20/27, 2026 issue of “FRIDAY