Sports
Column: Baseball diplomacy: How Shohei Ohtani, Yu Darvish bridge the Japan-South Korea divide
The day after the Dodgers deplaned at Incheon Airport, pictures of Shohei Ohtani and his wife were on the pages of every major newspaper in this country.
Not just any pages. The front pages.
On the evening news, segments on Ohtani were aired before those featuring the San Diego Padres, the Dodgers’ opening-day opponents. The Padres have a couple of Korean players in shortstop Ha-Seong Kim and right-hander Woo-Suk Go.
Ohtani is almost as popular here as he is in his home country.
“Right now,” journalist Jeeho Yoo of Yonhap News Agency said, “I think he’s the most beloved Japanese athlete in Korea.
“Ever.
“In any sport.”
For a Japanese athlete to be embraced by South Koreans to this degree is extraordinary, considering the history between their countries. Wounds remain from Japan’s brutal 35-year occupation of Korea in the early 20th century.
Such widespread admiration of a Japanese player would have been unimaginable as recently as 15 years ago, when baseball games between Japan and South Korea were as politically charged as soccer games between Argentina and England or India and Pakistan.
“Back then, with the old-school players, there was definitely tension between the two countries every time they would play each other,” Go said through an interpreter.
Yu Darvish, the Padres’ opening-day starter, played for Japan in the World Baseball Classic in 2009 and again last year. Japan played South Korea both times, but Darvish said the atmospheres were entirely dissimilar.
“There was a feeling in 2009 that South Korea was a rival, an enemy,” Darvish said in Japanese.
Japan won the first two WBCs, in 2006 and 2009, with Ichiro Suzuki as their star. Suzuki is disliked in South Korea to this day.
During a 1997 exhibition series in South Korea, Suzuki complained of the country smelling like garlic. Before the inaugural WBC, Ichiro said he wanted to teach opponents such as South Korea and Taiwan that they “couldn’t beat Japan for the next 30 years.”
South Korea defeated Japan in the first-round stage and again in the second-round group stage, after which then-Dodgers pitcher Jae Seo planted a South Korean flag on the mound in a game played at Angel Stadium.
Ichiro screamed in frustration, and later called the defeat “the most humiliating day of my baseball career.”
Japan later won the tournament.
Ohtani is considerably more respectful, which is one of the reasons he is adored here.
Asked about his popularity in South Korea this week, Ohtani replied in Japanese, “From long ago, Japan and South Korea have played games in international competitions that were extremely intense and I watched them from the time I was a child. I thought South Korea was a great team. Because of that, I’m looking forward to playing in South Korea, and I was grateful to be welcomed at the airport like that.”
Ohtani was also complimentary of South Korea and other Asian countries during the WBC last year.
Independent South Korean journalist Daniel Kim, who operates a YouTube channel with 151,000 subscribers, mentioned how Ohtani included a South Korean flag emoji in a recent caption for an Instagram post. Kim said the small gesture was appreciated, enough to where it made news.
Chan Ho Park, pitching for the Dodgers during a 2008 game, was the first South Korean-born player in MLB.
(Matt Sayles / Associated Press)
Chan Ho Park, a former Dodgers pitcher who was the first South Korean-born major leaguer, counts himself as one of Ohtani’s admirers. Park said South Koreans were right to view Ohtani as a role model.
“Ohtani is a perfect example,” Park said. “In the amateur leagues, they all talk about how Ohtani grew up. Obviously, working hard is the No. 1 priority, but it’s also how to behave to be the right student, the right son.”
As polite as Ohtani is, as unprecedented as his on-field performance is, why wouldn’t South Korea welcome him? The country has already welcomed plenty of other things Japanese.
Yoo mentioned that he drives a Honda and wears clothes by Uniqlo.
“There’s a good portion of the Korean population that likes Japanese culture,” Kim said. “Even when the relationship between the two nations is bad, you see Koreans traveling to Japan.”
Japan has in turn incorporated South Korean culture into its own culture.
“Like, 20 years ago, [Korean dramas], they took off in Japan first,” Kim said. “Before Japanese audiences started watching K-dramas, they were mostly a domestic thing. Somehow, they took off in Japan. K-pop took off in Japan. And then they started going all over the world.”
Baseball has also contributed to cultural exchanges.
San Francisco Giants rookie outfielder Jung Hoo Lee is the son of Jong Beom Lee, who played on South Korea’s WBC team in 2006. The younger Lee was born in Japan while his father was playing for the Chunichi Dragons in Nippon Professional Baseball.
Jung Hoo Lee’s childhood hero?
“As a kid, I loved Ichiro,” Lee said through an interpreter.
Lee shared a clubhouse in spring training this year with a Japanese player, Yoshi Tsutsugo.
“We’ve gone to dinner together and talked baseball,” Lee said.
When Go joined the Padres, he appreciated how Darvish approached him and greeted him in Korean: “Annyeonghaseyo,” or hello.
Padres relief pitcher Woo-Suk Go talks with Yuki Matsui, center, and Yu Darvish during spring training last month.
(Lindsey Wasson / Associated Press)
“We’re both from Asia,” Darvish said. “I know he has some uneasiness. At the same time, he wants to prove his strength, his personal strength, Korea’s strength. I understand that feeling.”
Go and shortstop Ha-Seong Kim now make it a point to say good morning to Darvish every day in Japanese: “Ohayo gozaimasu.”
Darvish said he purchased a translator application for his phone to communicate with his South Korean teammates.
More than anyone, Park understands the big differences that small actions like that can make. Park, who will deliver the ceremonial first pitch before the season opener on Wednesday, played with the Dodgers alongside Hideo Nomo.
Park and Nomo became lifelong friends. Nomo attended Park’s wedding. Nomo also traveled to South Korea for the opening of Park’s museum.
Park is hopeful that watching South Korean and Japanese players interact will make South Koreans and Japanese less suspicious of each other. Darvish has the same hope, saying the passing of time could heal the traumas and extinguish the prejudices of the past.
“I think it’s mostly older people who say, ‘I don’t like Korea’ or ‘I don’t like Japan,’” Darvish said.
Daniel Kim, who will be part of ESPN’s broadcast team for the Dodgers-Padres games, described the Japanese players on the Dodgers and Padres as the ultimate diplomats.
“What Shohei Ohtani and Yu Darvish have done for the last 48 hours is a lot more than what the political leaders have done on both sides in the last 10 years,” Kim said.
Darvish visited a cafe in Seoul run by a fan he befriended on Twitter.
Ohtani continued to share his fondness of South Korea, recalling a visit he made with a junior national team.
“I was still in high school at the time, so it was different than it is now,” Ohtani said. “But from that time, this was one of the countries I liked. At that point, I’d only been to Taiwan and South Korea, so in that sense, it was special. I think it’s also special that I’ve been able to come back [this week] to play baseball.”
It’s been special in other ways too — ways that extend far beyond balls and strikes and wins and losses.
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Russell Wilson and Sean Payton spent just one NFL season together, but tension lingered after a rocky year.
And it appears the tension that built up from that tumultuous stretch continues to linger.
Wilson’s interview on the “Bussin’ With the Boys” podcast, recorded before last month’s Super Bowl between Seattle and New England, recently resurfaced.
In the interview, Wilson doubled down on his October comment labeling Payton “classless,” saying he felt slighted by his former coach’s remarks.
Head coach Sean Payton of the Denver Broncos talks to quarterback Russell Wilson on the sideline during an NFL preseason football game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium Aug. 11, 2023, in Glendale, Ariz. (Ryan Kang/Getty Images)
“[When] you’ve been on the same side or this and that, and I got the same amount of rings as you got, meaning Sean, right?” said Wilson, who won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks as Payton did coaching for the New Orleans Saints.
“I got a lot of respect for him as a play-caller, this and that, but to take a shot, I don’t like. I don’t think it’s necessary, you know, I mean, especially when I’m not even on your own team anymore. So, for me, there’s a point in time where you have to, I’ve realized, I’ve stayed quiet for so long. There’s a there’s a time and place where I’m not.
“I know who I am as a competitor, as a warrior, as a champion, too, and, you know, I’ve beaten Sean, too. You know, like we’ve been on the same place and the same thing. And so, it’s not a matter of disrespect. Just don’t disrespect me.”
Sean Payton and Russell Wilson of the Denver Broncos during an a game against the Minnesota Vikings at Empower Field at Mile High Nov. 19, 2023, in Denver, Colo. (Ryan Kang/Getty Images)
After a rocky one-year stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2024, Wilson joined the New York Giants last offseason. However, he was relegated to a backup role after just three games.
Rookie Jaxson Dart quickly showed promise once he had the chance to start, but his season was briefly derailed by injury. Jameis Winston — not Wilson — stepped in for Dart in a handful of games. Dart threw three touchdowns in a Week 7 matchup with the Broncos, nearly pulling off an upset in what was eventually a close loss.
After the game, Payton said Dart provided a “spark” to the Giants’ offense.
“I was talking to [Giants owner] John Mara not too long ago, and I said, ‘We were hoping that that change would have happened long after our game,’” Payton said.
The New York Giants’ Russell Wilson attempts to escape a sack by Dallas Cowboys defensive end James Houston (53) in the first half of a game Sept. 14, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Payton also said the Broncos would have faced less of a challenge had Wilson been under center.
“Classless … but not surprised,” Wilson responded in a social media post. “Didn’t realize you’re still bounty hunting 15+ years later though the media.”
Despite last season’s struggles and chatter about his football future, Wilson does not appear ready to call it quits in 2026.
“I wanna play a few more years for sure,” he said. “I think, for me, I’ve always had the vision of getting to 40, at least. I think the game is different. Quarterbacks, we get hit. It’s not, you know, we get hit hard, but … there’s certain rules. I mean, back in the day when I started, bro, it was you just get [clobbered].
“I mean, so I feel like the game allows you to, you know, live a little longer, I guess. I feel healthy. I feel great. But I think, more than anything else is, do you love the game? Do you love studying? Do you love the passion for it all? Do you love the process? Do you love the practice? Do you love — everybody loves the winning part of it, but it’s process. There’s a journey that you got to be obsessed with. And that part I’m obsessed with.”
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The early rounds of the BNP Paribas Open began Wednesday, with top seeds slated to start play Friday during the 12-day ATP and WTPA Master 1000 tournament.
A busy stretch of the tennis season reaches another gear at Indian Wells Tennis Garden, the second largest outdoor tennis stadium in the world.
While many consider it the “fifth Grand Slam” because of its elite player field, amenities and equal prize money for men and women, professionals acknowledge the tournament is part of a stressful stretch on the tennis calendar.
Indian Wells is followed by the Miami Open, another two-week Master 1000 tournament. The tour stops are known as the “Sunshine Double.”
Some players made the short trip from Indian Wells to Las Vegas this past weekend to participate in the MGM Grand Slam, an exhibition designed to help players ramp up for back-to-back tournaments.
American Reilly Opelka, a 6-foot–11 pro, said managing fatigue after a series of tournaments before hitting Indian Wells has altered his practice and play in exhibition matches, including a loss to 19-year-old Brazilian Joao Fonseca in Las Vegas.
“Normally in any kind of competition, you get excited and play with a pressure point … but you don’t feel this when you are practicing,” Opelka said.
“I was trying to feel like this a few days ago while practicing with … [Tommy Paul,] but instead we got tired and hungry. … That usually doesn’t happen. We just decided to stop and go to eat somewhere.”
Paul said despite the decision to cut practice short, he feels fresh for the upcoming events.
“I started the year pretty well and for Americans, we are excited for the Sunshine Double,” Paul said.
Casper Rudd lost to Opelka during the first round of the Las Vegas exhibition. The Norwegian also lost a week ago during the first round of the Acapulco Open, falling to Chinese qualifier Yibing Wu in straight sets.
Rudd said he felt “extremely tired” after the Australian Open in January.
Rancho Palo Verdes resident Taylor Fritz, ranked No. 7 in the world, said the best way to prepare yourself for grueling tour schedule is “putting [in] the time, work and repetition.”
“… Be there, be focused on the quality that you are doing,” said Fritz, a 28-year-old who won the Indian Wells title in 2022.
While some players are guarding against burnout, others struggled to even reach California. Some players who live in Dubai, including Russians Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev, have to contend with closed airspace triggered by the U.S. and Israel bombing Iran.
The ATP announced Wednesday that, “the vast majority of players who were in Dubai have successfully departed today on selected flights.”
Sports
Law firm fighting for women’s sports in SCOTUS battle comments on ruling possibly impacting SJSU trans lawsuit
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A law firm leading the charge in the ongoing Supreme Court case over trans athletes in women’s sports has responded after a federal judge suggested the case’s ruling could impact a separate case involving a similar issue.
Colorado District Judge Kato Crews deferred ruling in motions to dismiss former San Jose State volleyball co-captain Brooke Slusser’s lawsuit against the California State University (CSU) system until after a ruling in the B.P.J. v. West Virginia Supreme Court case, which is expected to come in June.
Slusser filed the lawsuit against representatives of her school and the Mountain West Conference in fall 2024 after she allegedly was made to share bedrooms and changing spaces with trans teammate Blaire Fleming for a whole season without being informed that Fleming is a biological male.
Meanwhile, the B.P.J. case went to the Supreme Court after a trans teen sued West Virginia to block the state’s law that prevents males from competing in girls’ high school sports.
The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) is the primary law firm defending West Virginia in that case at the Supreme Court, and has now responded to news that Slusser’s lawsuit could be affected by the SCOTUS ruling.
“We hope the ruling from the Supreme Court will affirm that Title IX was designed to guarantee equal opportunity for women, not to let male athletes displace women and girl in competition. It is crucial that sports be separated by sex for not only the equal opportunity of women but for safety and privacy. Title IX should protect women’s right to compete in their own sports. Allowing men to compete in the female category reverses 50 years of advancement for women,” ADF Vice President of Litigation Strategies Jonathan Scruggs said.
Slusser’s attorney, Bill Bock of the Independent Council on Women’s Sports, expects a Supreme Court ruling in favor of the legal defense representing West Virginia, thus helping his case.
(Left) Brooke Slusser (10) of the San Jose State Spartans serves the ball during the first set against the Air Force Falcons at Falcon Court at East Gym in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Oct. 19, 2024. (Right) Blaire Fleming #3 of the San Jose State Spartans looks on during the third set against the Air Force Falcons at Falcon Court at East Gym on October 19, 2024 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. ( Andrew Wevers/Getty Images; Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)
“We’re looking forward to the case going forward,” Bock told Fox News Digital.
“I believe that the court is going to find that Title IX operates on the basis of biological sex, without regard to an assumed or professed gender, and so just like the congress and the members of congress that passed Title IX in 1972, allowed this specifically provided for in the regulations that there had to be separate men’s and women’s teams based on biological sex, I think the court is going to see that is the original meaning of the statute and apply it in that way, and I think it’s going to be a big win in women’s sports.”
The Supreme Court’s conservative majority appeared prepared to rule in favor of West Virginia after oral arguments on Jan. 13.
Slusser spoke on the steps of the Supreme Court on Jan. 13 while oral arguments took place inside, sharing her experience with a divided crowd of opposing protesters.
With Fleming on its roster, SJSU reached the 2024 conference final by virtue of a forfeit by Boise State in the semifinal round. SJSU lost in the final to Colorado State.
Slusser went on to develop an eating disorder due to the anxiety and trauma from the scandal and dropped out of her classes the following semester. The eating disorder became so severe, that Slusser said she lost her menstrual cycle for nine months. Her decision to drop her classes resulted in the loss of her scholarship, and her parents said they had to foot the bill out of pocket for an unfinished final semester of college.
President Donald Trump’s Department of Education determined in January that SJSU violated Title IX in its handling of the situation involving Fleming, and has given the university an ultimatum to agree to a series of resolutions or face a referral to the Department of Justice.
Among the department’s findings, it determined that a female athlete discovered that the trans student allegedly conspired to have a member of an opposing team spike her in the face during a match. ED claims that “SJSU did not investigate the conspiracy, but later subjected the female athlete to a Title IX complaint for ‘misgendering’ the male athlete in online videos and interviews.”
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SJSU trans player Blaire Fleming and teammate Brooke Slusser went to a magic show and had Thanksgiving together in Las Vegas despite an ongoing lawsuit over Fleming being transgender. (Thien-An Truong/San Jose State Athletics)
SJSU Athletic Director Jeff Konya told Fox News Digital in a July interview that he was satisfied with how the university handled the situation involving Fleming.
“I think everybody acted in the best possible way they could, given the circumstances,” Konya said.
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