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Epic Agricultural Mural of Shohei Ohtani and Dog Decoy Goes Viral Amid Tokyo Series

Tim Capurso|
Ohtani walks through the dugout with his dog Decoy.
Ohtani walks through the dugout with his dog Decoy. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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Los Angeles Dodgers

In the first game of the Tokyo Series, Shohei Ohtani, in his return to his native country of Japan, helped lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 4-1 win over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday. And Ohtani continues to make his country proud, as he belted a two-run home run in an exhibition game against the Yomiuri Giants on Saturday, then rapped two hits in Tuesday's season-opening victory.

Amidst the Ohtani-mania, a photo of a stunning agricultural mural, which was depicted to honor the Dodgers superstar and his beloved dog Decoy, went viral after it was shown on the Fox broadcast of the Dodgers-Cubs game.

Check out the epic mural.

The roughly 3,000-square-meter mural is made from seven varieties of rice, which were planted by a local volunteer group in his hometown of Oshu, Iwate Prefecture in June of 2024. The mural also features the phrase "Let's play baseball."

It's no surprise that such an impressive tribute is going viral once again.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer for Sports Illustrated, primarily covering MLB, college football and college basketball. Before joining SI in November 2023, Capurso worked at RotoBaller and ClutchPoints and is a graduate of Assumption University. When he's not working, he can be found at the gym, reading a book or enjoying a good hike. A resident of New York, Capurso openly wonders if the Giants will ever be a winning football team again.

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