Visiting Shohei Ohtani’s high school: Ben Verlander’s Japan diary

City Ben Verlander
FOX Sports MLB Analyst

Editor’s note: Ben Verlander is spending time in Japan exploring Shohei Ohtani’s roots, experiencing the country’s culture and meeting fans. This is the fourth in a recurring series that began Friday, Aug. 19.

Hello again from Japan! I am writing this from the dugout of the baseball stadium at Shohei Ohtani’s high school, Hanamaki Higashi High.

The day started very early with a 4:30 am wake-up call. I hopped on a bullet train from Tokyo Station at 6 am to travel to Hanamaki, Iwate, the area of ​​the country that produced the legendary Ohtani. I wrote yesterday that we were traveling 150 mph — it was actually more like 200 mph, as this beautiful train whisked me across the Japanese countryside with speed and style.

While we were en route, I was offered many options for breakfast. Most all of them involved tuna in some form. My translator and guide, Masa, (who I will take every opportunity to say has been the key to making this trip possible) chowed down on a sandwich comprised of two pancakes with beans in the middle. He was quite proud of his selection.

Now, a bit about our destination. Iwate is one of the northernmost prefectures (similar to a state) on Japan’s biggest island. It is scenic, mountainous and apparently a great snowboarding destination in the winter. Within Iwate, Hanamaki is a quiet town that reminds me of my hometown in Virginia.

Once we arrived at the train station, we headed straight to yet another baseball field. This one was very different from the bright lights of the Tokyo Dome that we experienced. The Mizusawa Little League field is where Shohei learned to play the game as a child.

Nestled between two highways, a river and what appeared to be a mineral field, this is the site of the origin story for the greatest baseball player on earth.

I learned that the river over the right field fence actually played a big role in that story. As Ohtani started to develop some pop, he quickly made it a habit to hit balls over the fence and into the river to be lost forever. Eventually, Ohtani’s coach came to him and asked that he stop hitting balls into the river because they could not afford to continue to purchase new ones. So, Ohtani learned to drive baseballs into left field consistently, building the foundation of his ability to hit to all fields in the majors.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the children we met at that field. None spoke any English, but we were all bonded by our love of the player who used to run the bases at that very field. We took pictures, played catch and debated whether Shohei the pitcher could strike out Shohei the hitter (with the help of Masa, of course). I really didn’t want to leave.

As we drove away, the team swarmed our van to say goodbye. I really can’t put into words how much that moment meant to me. I will never forget it.

Next, we made the drive to another point of interest in the Angels star’s life: Hanamaki Higashi High School. During the ride, I made a quick pit stop for what was without a doubt, the best convenience store sushi I’ve ever had — not that there was ever much competition for that illustrious title.

When I eventually arrived at the campus, my jaw dropped. This was not like any high school I’ve been to in the states. It was much more like a beautiful university campus. Athletic facilities and a bell tower rise above the tree line, unlike any facilities I’ve seen in town at this point in my trip to Hanamaki. We parked and headed straight to the stadium where Shohei’s legend first began to take shape.

This stadium is massive. It has a capacity of 12,000 and feels like a minor-league stadium. (I’ve played in plenty.) It features a massive electronic scoreboard in the outfield and grass so pristine you could mistake it for Augusta National. Above the right field fence lies a patch of grass, then another fence, then a line of trees. When I asked if any notable stories about Shohei had occurred here, a former high school teammate of his told me he once hit a pitch OVER those trees. I have seen video of this moment and can confirm it is as absurd as it sounds.

While we were there, Ohtani’s former team was conducting a scrimmage against another local team. After the game came to a close, they took part in a practice that was awesome to watch. It was the most upbeat, technically sound high school practice I have ever seen. The communication was non-stop and the execution of every single play was precise and perfect.

For practice, they were working on a “Situations” drill, where the coach puts runners on the bases where he wants, the defense is set, and the coach hits balls exactly how he wants to. When a ball is hit, a runner from home plate takes off and then the play plays out as it may. It’s a classic baseball drill that I have never seen executed so flawlessly.

I took off after they were done with the drill, but their day was far from over. After a full scrimmage and drills, the team headed back to the practice field to take more BP and then even more individual drills. A former player told me that these kids are only allowed to use their smartphones for one hour per day to call their families. Other than that, they were completely focused.

When I pressed him on this, he responded in English with something we can both agree on… “Baseball is life!”

We headed back to what I have been told is one of the nicest hotels in all of Iwate, the Hanamaki Onsen. To best explain this, it is a traditional Japanese hotel with Tatami rooms. After playing baseball my entire life, I’ve probably stayed in thousands of hotel rooms, but never one like this.

I opened the door and was greeted by a large, empty room with a low table, two chairs flat on the ground and not much else. I opened the manual that read “INSTRUCTIONS” in English, but that turned out to be the only English word in the entire book.

After searching my room for a solid five minutes, a passerby told me that when I went to dinner, the hotel staff would come make my bed for me. I asked him more questions and ended up learning more in those few minutes than I could have ever imagined about the Japanese culture. I was told to put on the traditional robes that had been left in my hotel room and proceed to the dining hall, where I experienced a buffet that would put anyone in Vegas to shame. Sushi, sashimi, pasta, crab and dozens of other things that I still haven’t identified, but were to die for.

Our first meeting of the trip was scheduled for tonight as well. Hanamaki is a small rural city, so I didn’t really know what to expect. It was scheduled for 8 pm and I showed up at 8:05 to a crowd of people out in front. Already, 15 or so people were standing there waiting for my arrival. I got out of the cab, and they started clapping and cheering as I walked up. It was another “pinch-me” moment. It’s important to note that this isn’t about me. This is the “Flippin’ Bats” community rallying around Shohei Ohtani. These meetups are really just a group celebration of Shohei.

One of the first encounters I had was with a man explaining why there is as much appreciation as there is. “The people of Iwate are really quite shy, they won’t openly talk about Shohei Ohtani and how they feel he should be the MVP of the league again. You are speaking for the entire prefecture of Iwate,” he said.

Another girl drove more than 40 minutes to come to the meetup and shared a tragic, powerful story. She is terminally ill and her outlook on life was no longer so positive. She hugely appreciates Shohei Ohtani because of how much fun he has going about life. That appreciation led to her finding me. She said “Flippin’ Bats” has continued to help her in life, adding to the continued brightness and positivity that she only found through her newfound love of Ohtani.

The night came to an end after the meetup but not before there were plenty of gifts given and a great group photo was taken. I left with a beautiful bouquet of flowers, glass that was handmade for me, earplugs, a wind chime, handwritten letters, and more memories that will last a lifetime.

Ben Verlander is an MLB Analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the “Flippin’ Bats” podcast. Born and raised in Richmond, Virginia, Verlander was an All-American at Old Dominion University before he joined his brother, Justin, in Detroit as a 14th-round pick of the Tigers in 2013. He spent five years in the Tigers organization. Follow him on Twitter @Ben Verlander.

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