Japanese PM on Ohtani's "great achievement" in baseball

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has congratulated Japanese Major League Baseball player Shohei Ohtani on winning the 2021 American League Most Valuable Player award.

Kishida said it was "a great achievement" and hinted that he was thinking of giving an award to Ohtani. Ohtani, the Los Angeles Angels' two-way superstar, became the second Japanese winner after former Seattle Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki took home the 2001 American League MVP award. Ohtani received all 30 first-place votes for his consistently excellent performance.