The crowds at Tokyo Dome go silent for Ohtani’s at-bats then erupt in cheers for anything he does, but he seems largely unaffected by a level of attention that might be matched by only a handful

Shohei Ohtani met the moment in his return to the Tokyo Dome, because of course he did. In Saturday’s exhibition against the Yomiuri Giants, Ohtani – ever the showman – was quick to slug a home run while wearing a major league uniform in his home country for the first time for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Years from now, people who weren’t here will claim they were. The people who actually were here won’t be complaining about the outrageous ticket prices.