OSHU CITY, Japan — Shohei Ohtani’s hometown in northern Japan is a rural place, famous for its high-quality Maesawa beef, its history of making traditional hardware store and the intense green of the hills and mountains that surround it.

The Japanese call such places “inaka,” which roughly translates to “field.” No ostentation, quiet streets and in the north, cold winters. It is only 500 kilometers (300 miles) from Tokyo, but it seems further away.

Today, the city of Oshu is most famous for Ohtani himself and the intense pride that local people show in one of the sport’s greatest players. Starting in the local little league with the Mizusawa Pirates, he played for Hanamaki Higashi High School, a path that took him to the World Series. His Los Angeles Dodgers lead the New York Yankees 3-0, and fans here will be watching closely as Los Angeles attempts to clinch the title early Wednesday morning local time.

The city honors Ohtani at all times. And to experience it, start first with hairdresser Hironobu Kanno’s salon called “Seems.”

The waiting room is a museum dedicated to Ohtani with around 300 artifacts hanging, stacked and crammed into every corner. There are still more items in storage.

There are signed Dodgers and Angels jerseys, dozens of autographed baseballs, bats, shoes, hats, gloves, dolls, photographs of Othani and his wife Mamiko Tanaka, jerseys adorned with images of their Decopin dog (Decoy in English), stuffed animals, pillows and life-size cutouts of the superstar.

Kanno said many fans come to town on a sort of “pilgrimage” and his store is often part of that.

“My clients and those who come to visit Ohtani’s hometown really enjoy seeing the collection, and I think it’s a very effective way to feel closer to Ohtani,” she said.

The collecting began innocently enough when Kanno attended a baseball game on May 23, 2013, the first professional game in which Ohtani batted and pitched. This was for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Japan, and Kanno returned with a ball signed by Ohtani.

“When I put the ball with Ohtani’s autograph in my living room, the customers were very happy to see it,” Kanno said. “So I started collecting goods little by little.”

The rest is history.

He said his most prized item is a cap signed by the Japanese players who defeated the United States in the final. final of last year’s World Baseball Classic at the Tokyo Dome.

Nanno confessed that the cost of Ohtani products continues to increase. He suggested he had spent about 10 million yen (perhaps $100,000) on Ohtani products over a decade, and guessed the value could be five or six times that.

He said he had never met Ohtani or his mother and father, Toru and Kayako, and that the superstar had never seen the collection. He eventually said he would like to see it in a real museum, adding that he was not there for financial gain.

Head across town to City Hall if you need more Ohtani souvenirs. One corner is filled with photos of Ohtani, newspaper clippings and pennants reminding him that he won the American League MVP in 2023 and 2021. He is the favorite to be the National League MVP this season.

The centerpiece of the city hall collection is a replica of Ohtani’s right hand. The golden hand allows you to grab it and watch a video with Ohtani showing how the replica was made.

Keigo Kishino and his wife Chiaki said they traveled in a day from the western city of Osaka (by plane and train) just to shake hands.

“He’s a source of energy for me, or something like that,” Chiaki said.

Jeffrey Kingston, who teaches history at Temple University in Japan, described Ohtani as a “combination of sheer skill, pride and nationalism that makes him irresistible to the Japanese public and anyone remotely interested in the game, extending even to people at the ones who never really cared.” about baseball.”

He was referring in part to his wife Machiko Osawa, an economics professor at Japan Women’s University. She is not a baseball fan. But Othani piqued his interest, at least in the short term.

“Ohtani changed the image of the Japanese and helps transcend their complex feelings towards Westerners,” he explained.

“When I was young, there was a huge difference in ability between American players and Japanese players. Japanese players are shorter and cannot compete, but now Ohtani changed the image of Japanese baseball players. “He is tall, fit and a superstar.”

Ohtani is the only MLB player from the city of Oshu, although others have come from nearby areas. Pitcher Yusei Kikuchi also attended Hanamaki Higashi High School and Rintaro Sasaki —son of Ohtani’s high school coach—is a phenom who skipped professional baseball in Japan entirely and currently plays at Stanford.

But no one generates as much excitement at home as Ohtani. Earlier this year, a local rice field was used as an “art canvas” with the image of Ohtani in Dodger blue and wearing the number 17, with Decoy next to him, cut into the green field. The resemblance is unmistakable.

Oshu Mayor Jun Kuranari spoke of Ohtani as an inspiration, and the rice paddy could be an example. He also mentioned Ohtani as a role model.

“He plays with such a pure heart and his performance is amazing,” the mayor said. “But what I think is also amazing is that he is able to stay humble while playing so well. He is a role model for everyone and makes the locals proud too.”

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