Photo/Illutration A rice paddy in Oshu, Iwate Prefecture, depicts Shohei Ohtani throwing a pitch on July 5. (Kazumasa Sugimura)

OSHU, Iwate Prefecture—Residents here created a field of dreams for hometown hero Shohei Ohtani.

A 1,000-square-meter rice paddy field shows Ohtani wearing Japan’s national team uniform throwing a pitch in the World Baseball Classic this year.

The two-way superstar of the Los Angeles Angels led Japan to the WBC title.

Hitomebore rice and four types of different colored glutinous rice were used for the image. The words “WBC MVP” and “Oraho no☆” (star of the region) also appear in the field.

Many people viewed the artwork on July 5, Ohtani’s 29th birthday.

Local land and real estate surveyors started calculating how to lay out the paddy field in February. Residents planted the rice on June 4.

The artwork is now at its peak, and it can be viewed until the end of July.

“Ohtani is the pride of our community. He is a big star, and we are so proud of him,” Makoto Morioka, 71, a member of the paddy art’s executive committee, said.

The harvested glutinous rice will be served to local children during the Koshogatsu (little new year) event, in which people pray for a bountiful harvest.

Toshiko Onodera, 86, who resides in Oshu city, visited the paddy with an acquaintance.

“He looks so dignified and even more handsome,” she said.

The paddy is near the site of the Battle of Subuse, where Aterui, a hero of the Emishi tribe, defeated imperial forces in the eighth century.

It is also close to Ohtani’s birthplace and the Tokiwa kindergarten, which he attended for three years.

Akiko Sakuyama, head of the Tokiwa kindergarten, said: “Sho-chan was bigger than everyone else, kind and capable of doing anything. He was a hard worker, and I feel like he has grown up while retaining his childhood spirit.”

Related News