本期封面故事

Shohei Ohtani: Baseball Star of the Century
百年一見的棒球明星——大谷翔平
—James Baron

Japanese baseball star Shohei Ohtani is a once-in-a-century player, the likes of whom have not been seen in Major League Baseball (MLB) since the days of Babe Ruth. In December 2017, Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Angels, and there has been much excitement surrounding his switch from Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) to the MLB. Ohtani is not only an unbelievably fast pitcher but also a remarkably powerful hitter. The 23-year-old is now set to become the first true two-way player since Ruth.

Even in his high school days, it was obvious Ohtani was special. In 2012, he broke the record for the fastest pitch by a Japanese high school player, throwing a 160-kph ball at the Summer Koshien, Japan’s annual high school tournament. Shortly after, he announced his intention to go straight into the MLB. However, after a long negotiation process, the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters convinced him to sign with them. In his time with the Fighters, Ohtani recorded the fastest pitch in NPB history—165 kph—and won the home run derby. In 2016, he hit the ball so hard that it went into the ceiling of the Tokyo Dome!

日本棒球明星大谷翔平是一位百年一見的選手，自從貝比．魯斯時代之後就沒有在美國職棒大聯盟見過像他這樣的選手。二○一七年十二月，大谷與洛杉磯天使隊簽約，許多人對他從日本職棒轉戰美國職棒大聯盟都感到興奮不已。大谷不僅是一位不可思議的速球投手，也是一位出色的強棒。今年二十三歲的他現在準備好要成為魯斯之後第一位真正的二刀流選手。

甚至在他高中時期大谷就展現出與眾不同。二○一二年，他打破日本高中選手最速球的紀錄，在夏季甲子園（日本一年一度的高中棒球錦標賽）丟出了時速一百六十公里的球。不久之後，他宣布打算要直接進入美國職棒大聯盟。然而，經過長時間的談判過程後，北海道日本火腿鬥士隊說服他與他們簽約。在他加入火腿鬥士隊期間，大谷創下日本職棒史上最速球的紀錄——時速一百六十五公里——並且贏得了全壘打大賽冠軍。二○一六年，他擊出了一顆非常猛的球，擊中東京巨蛋的屋頂！
 
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