What souvenirs were looking for fans in Tokyo Series Dodgers-Cubs?

ByDavid Mitchell
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The fans who attended the exhibition and inauguration matches of Dodgers and Cubs in the Tokyo Dome crowded the Souvernirs store. What was the most wanted?

Tokyo – Los Angeles Dodgers They granted him to Shohei Ohtani an unprecedented contract of 700 million dollars with the hope of attract interest –And the dollars that come with him-of the fans on the other side of the Pacific.

It seems that It is working. It is the main attraction When the Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs open he curtain of the season regular of Major Leagues on Tuesday and Wednesday at the Tokyo Dome.

It is also generating interest outside the field, being the name highlighted in an extensive souvenir store occupied by an exhibition hall in the dome complex.

The MLB calls this installation its “largest special event store in history.”

“Isn’t it crazy?” Lillian Izawa said, who slowly walked through the store, trapped between buyers and souvenir shelves, most with the name, face or number 17 of Ohtani.

Like thousands of others, Izawa waited only for an hour to enter, with fans of three or four in a tail in a serpenting line that entered the 30,000 square feet store. She chose a sunny day. But the ranks seemed to become longer, even on a rainy Sunday in Tokyo.

The daily flow intensified with the games on Tuesday and Wednesday. Both the Dodgers and MLB will benefit from Ohtani, who signed a contract of 700 million dollars for 10 years last season.

Let’s call it a “Merchandising Museum” dedicated to Ohtani and its two Japanese companions, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki, and the Dodgers. There is even a small section for Cubs fans with most usual items: caps, t -shirts, and MLB memories.

“The Japanese will buy anything that is in limited edition and difficult to get, and they will resell it,” said Izawa, an American Japanese from Honolulu and Hawaiian Airlines flight assistant.

World Shopping Center

The Souvenir store illustrates that Ohtani could be intensifying world interest in baseball.

“This is an important series,” said the Cub manager, Craig Counsell. “He emphasizes that baseball is in a world stage, a world platform.”

Rosie Rosas, a fans of the Dodgers, from San Diego, made the trip to Tokyo with her son to visit her husband who works in Japan. Tickets for the Dodgers-Cubs games were impossible to get. But go shopping not.

“It doesn’t happen very often, games like this, and Dodgers are champions,” Rosas said. “And the Japanese players we have are incredible.”

Ruby Yu and Nick Mah, two Canadians with roots in Hong Kong, traveled from Vancouver on vacation and made Ohtani part of the experience.

“Things are selling quickly,” Ruby said while Nick was by his side with a bag full of items.

They paid $ 200 for two tickets for Friday’s exhibition game between the Hanshin Tigers and the Cubs. The Tigers won 3-0. The cheapest tickets for the Dodgers-Cubs games range around $ 1,500 in the resale.

“We knew that the Japanese were great baseball fans,” Ruby said.

Dressed in a blue Cubs shirt, the fan Jason Umbreit was spending modestly in the souvenir shop, happy to have found a corner with merchandise in Chicago.

“I knew it was going to be full, and this is the biggest store I’ve seen,” he said.

He is also one of the most fortunate baseball fans in the world. He said he paid only $ 60 for an entrance for one of the Dodgers-Cubs games

“I got the ticket when they went on sale,” he said. “I was lucky.”

Prices, exchange rate

The value of the Japanese Yen has fallen dramatically in relation to the dollar in the last two and a half years. That means that it has become very expensive for the Japanese to travel to the United States. Yen buys less and less dollars, making US prices look very high for the Japanese. On the contrary, tourists with dollars find affordable Japan.

This means that this MLB store is a useful opportunity for many Japanese fans to buy covered merchandise from Ohtani and Yamamoto. The majority suggested that prices-although expensive-could be cheaper than in the United States.

Yamamoto, the Dodgers pitcher, was asked about his reaction when he saw thousands of fans wearing Dodgers clothes, some with his name on the back. Or see your face in posters or inside the huge souvenir shop.

“I see the support of my fans and I would like to turn it into positive energy and take it to the mound,” he replied. And he did, defeating Cubs on Tuesday 4-1.

At the highest end, the store offers white or blue dodgers shirts for around 75,000 yen -500 dollars. There are also other styles of Cubs and Dodgers t-shirts for a little less-around 25,000 yen-approximately 170 dollars.

Caps and t -shirts are among the favorites, many in the range of 30 to 50 dollars. There are keychains for around 18 dollars and game programs for $ 20.

“I think prices are reasonable,” said Kohei Matsui, a 21 -year -old Japanese student. He described the crowds and the chaos of purchases as “beyond what I expected.”

“All the Japanese love baseball and the big leagues, and we wanted to see it once in our life,” Matsui added. “This is the opportunity.”

David Mitchell
David Mitchell

As a passionate sports journalist with over a decade of experience, I strive to uncover the heart and soul behind every game. Supported by a dedicated team of fellow enthusiasts and storytellers, I am committed to delivering insightful and engaging content that connects fans worldwide. Together, we celebrate the victories, challenges, and unifying spirit of sports through every article we craft.