Shohei Ohtani's MVP Wins: A Boost for Japan's Newspapers

Shohei Ohtani, a Japanese baseball star playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers, just won his third Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. This time, it's his first in the National League, adding to his two previous wins in the American League with the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani's achievements have sparked a interesting trend in Japan. Every year when Ohtani sets new records, Japanese newspapers print special editions. These were handed out in central Tokyo on a Friday morning. Japan is ahead of New York by 14 hours. Yoshio Inoue, a student, picked up his copy and said, "Ohtani keeps breaking records that no one else can match. " Just a month ago, Ohtani and the Dodgers won the World Series. That also led to special editions being made into collectors' items. Each newspaper had its own design, but they all featured "MVP" in big letters and Ohtani in Dodgers blue. Ohtani grew up in a rural area of northern Japan, where he's deeply admired. Yuko Shimamoto, a reader, shared her thoughts, "I was reading the paper and realized he's amazing. It's great to have him representing Japan in MLB. " In Japan, these single-page special editions are known as "gogai. " They're a tradition for marking special events and boosting newspaper sales. While readership is decreasing in Japan, it's still stronger than in many other countries. Ohtani received all 30 first-place votes and 420 points. New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor came in second with 263 points, and Arizona second baseman Ketel Marte was third with 229.