The Japanese national baseball team has had no rivals in its first five games of the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC).
It completed the group phase with a 4-0 record in Pool B, played in Tokyo.
Led by Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani, Japan defeated Australia, South Korea, China, and the Czech Republic.
There was a special connection between Ohtani and the Czech Republic, one that became evident in the game between the two countries.
That game ended with a 10-2 Japanese victory, but you could tell the admiration that many of the Czech felt towards Ohtani.
It’s not every day that a team of non-professional baseball players gets to share the field with the most unique player of our generation and maybe in history.
They have Ohtani’s respect and love, because the star was spotted arriving in the United States with a Czech cap.
“@shoheiohtani out there casually wearing #baseballczech cap while arriving in USA for @WBCBaseball semifinals!!! What a great honour!” the official Twitter account of the Czech Republic’s baseball team wrote, uploaded with a video.
👀 @shoheiohtani out there casually wearing #baseballczech cap while arriving in USA for @WBCBaseball semifinals!!! 🇨🇿 🫶🏻 What a great honor!
🎥 : https://t.co/7jFQebuVl6#CzechIN #baseballczech @MLB @MLBNetwork @MilujemeBasebal @MLBONFOX pic.twitter.com/09aQMD4gXZ
—BaseballCzech (@BaseballCzech) March 17, 2023
In the clip, Ohtani is shown rocking the European country’s cap.
What a nice gesture by Ohtani, known as a classy guy.
You can tell the Czech are honored by the fact a global icon like Ohtani is wearing their cap.
It’s one of several nice stories that have surfaced in the World Baseball Classic.
It has truly been one of the best Classics ever, maybe the most attractive and exciting.
Thanks in large part to Ohtani, the event has grown exponentially in 2023.
He is a true baseball ambassador.
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