<figure id="attachment_459972" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-459972" style="width: 3827px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="fe879441"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/03/5f80e3932d8c2c877d182f73c641ef5d.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-459972" class="wp-caption-text">Ohtani ended up with a no-hitter in the training game. Expect him to explode in the main event.</figcaption></figure>
<h2> It&#8217;s up to Otani to decide. &#8230;&#8230;</h2>
 Samurai Japan is aiming for a second consecutive WBC championship. The Dodgers&#8217; Shohei Ohtani, 31, will be at the center of the circle again this year. In the previous tournament, Ohtani played a full two-fisted role and was the pitcher of the tournament, but it is believed that he will concentrate on being a hitter in this year&#8217;s tournament.
 He underwent surgery for a dislocated left shoulder in the off-season before last, and last season he continued to appear mainly as a designated hitter, making only 14 starts as a pitcher.&#8221; In September 2011, he underwent his second elbow surgery, and if he were to undergo a third surgery, &#8220;Pitcher Otani&#8221; would be in danger of going out of business at that point.
 The Dodgers have emphasized that Otani&#8217;s decision to concentrate on batting in this tournament was made by Otani himself, but in reality, they probably didn&#8217;t want him to pitch at all costs,&#8221; said a reporter for a major sports newspaper.
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 However, some fans and sponsors of Samurai Japan are still waiting for Otani to pitch.
 Hirokazu Ibata, 50, has received strong requests from several sponsors of Samurai Japan to &#8216;somehow bring back the two-faced pitching. The Samurai leaders seem to be saying, &#8216;It&#8217;s Otani who decides, so there&#8217;s nothing we can do about it. &#8230;&#8230; But Otani himself has not made up his mind that he will never pitch.
 The question is how to convince the Dodgers. Roberts and the team&#8217;s GM have repeatedly stated that Otani &#8220;will not pitch in the WBC.
 The most likely condition that has been proposed is that Otani will pitch in only one game, and only 20 pitches. In fact, the Angels, who Ohtani was a member of at the time, were reluctant to allow him to play two games in the previous tournament. However, with some &#8220;push and shove&#8221; on Ohtani&#8217;s part, they were able to clear the air and he was able to pitch.
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 Of course, the negotiations have been extremely difficult.
 Negotiations will probably continue until the U.S. round. There is absolutely no chance that they will give the go-ahead just before the final against the U.S. team.
 In the previous tournament, Ohtani had a moment of joy after striking out Trout. If he beats the American general Judge in this year&#8217;s tournament and becomes the pitcher who wins back-to-back championships, he will become a new legend.

 Kyodo News

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