Die-hard baseball fans flocked to a Los Angeles neighborhood ahead of the Dodgers’ win over the New York Yankees in the 2024 World Series, and many came from around the world thanks to one player.

People here in the Los Angeles suburb of Little Tokyo call it the “Ohtani effect.”

Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers’ star player, looms large in the historic neighborhood, personified by a 150-foot (45-meter) mural and his name emblazoned on the jerseys worn by fans here.

Baseball may be known as “America’s pastime,” but its biggest star is from Japan. The player signed an unprecedented contract to play this season – a whopping $700m (£540m) over 10 years – and the hype surrounding him has only grown, attracting new fans and new traditions. in multicultural Los Angeles.

Business has flourished here. Tourists come from all over, even from the star’s home country.

“When Shohei comes to bat, they know that if he hits the home run we start serving shots of sake,” says Don Tahara, owner of the Far Bar, where dozens of televisions show Dodger games. Home runs equal free rice wine, often to hundreds of fans.

That’s a lot of sake. Ohtani has hit 54 home runs this regular season, though none in the World Series, which was won Wednesday when the Dodgers overcame a 5-0 deficit to beat the Yankees 7-6.

Before winning the series, Tahara said of Shohei and his drink of sake: “It’s good for the Dodgers, maybe not so good for my pocketbook. But it is significant, it warms my heart.”

Far Bar was packed during the World Series.

Tahara handed out mochi, a Japanese rice cake, decorated with the Dodgers logo, and free margarita shots in honor of Fernando Valenzuela, the Dodger legend who recently died. The Mexican-born left-handed pitcher is also being immortalized in a mural, across the river from Little Tokyo in Boyle Heights.

Splattered with paint, muralist Robert Vargas took a break from painting Valenzuela to watch one of the series’ matches at Far Bar. It’s hard to imagine Mr. Vargas buying his own drink at Far Bar; in Little Tokyo is possibly as beloved as Ohtani for immortalizing the baseball star on the enormous wall of the Miyako Hotel.

“I’ve been a Dodgers fan my whole life,” says Vargas, who says he painted Ohtani “in a spirit of representation.”

And the mural has become a popular destination for Japanese tourists who come by the busload to pose for photos with the artwork.

Takatani Kiuchi traveled from Japan to attend game two of the series at Dodger Stadium in the heart of Los Angeles, and watched game three from Far Bar with his friends. Dressed head to toe in Dodgers gear and Ohtani jerseys, Kiuchi met with fans from all over Los Angeles and the world.

“We are new Dodgers fans. From Tokyo. For us it’s more about the Yankees against the Dodgers; “That means a lot more than the World Series.”

They were excited that the second game of the series also featured the team’s other Japanese star: Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, pitching six innings, allowing just one Yankee hit.

Kiuchi last came to Los Angeles as a child 50 years ago and says he will definitely come back to see the Dodgers play again.

“We came here to see this,” Kiuchi cheered when the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman hit a home run during Game 3 and the crowd in the bar erupted in cheers.

The city’s tourist office is also applauding. In 2023, there were 230,000 visitors from Japan to Los Angeles, an increase of 91.7 percent from 2022.

And by the end of the year, the city is expected to welcome 320,000 visitors, says Bill Karz, senior vice president of brand marketing for LA Tourism. It’s still a drop from pre-pandemic levels, but tourism officials are celebrating the increase.

“The Ohtani effect is real,” says Karz. “It affects our entire economy.”

That, he says, translates into increased hotel occupancy, ticket sales at area theme parks like Universal Studios and tours of Dodger Stadium, which, in turn, has increased the number of Japanese-language tours that perform.

Even some devout Yankees fans have jumped on the Ohtani bandwagon.

In a sea of ​​Dodger blue, Vince Gonzales sported a black and red “Ohtani” jersey from the Japanese national team.

“Shhh, I’m a Yankees fan,” he whispered at the bar while mingling with tourists from Japan. “But the most important thing is that I am a fan of Ohtani because I am passionate about Japanese baseball.”

Far Bar erupted in cheers and “I love LA” played over the sound system as game three ended with a Dodgers victory.

Robert Vargas – the muralist – could not escape. A Japanese woman ran out of the bar to ask for photos in front of the mural. He obliged and soon there were dozens of people posing with him for photos and chanting, “Go Dodgers!”