The Los Angeles Dodgers star is a marketer’s dream — both a sports icon and national hero in Japan. Ohtani has about 20 active sponsorship deals at any time.

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

The Dodgers have a monopoly on prominent Japanese players. MLB is fine with that, especially as Shohei Ohtani sells out corner stores in Tokyo.