Mural Featuring Ohtani Unveiled in Star’s Hometown; LA Artist Brings His City’s Culture to Oshu, Iwate Pref.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:30 JST, October 5, 2025

A mural featuring Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani has been unveiled in his hometown of Oshu, Iwate Prefecture.

The mural, found on a wall at the front entrance of Machinaka Koryukan hall in the city center, is three meters high and 4.8 meters long. It features Ohtani, 31, swinging a baseball bat while looking up at a ball.

The artwork is drawing attention as a new sightseeing spot for people wishing to visit locations related to the baseball sensation, similar to his 2023 Season MVP and Home Run King Monument at Hanamakihigashi High School, where he graduated, and an iron model of his hand located at the municipal government office.

The mural was painted by LA-based artist Robert Vargas, who created a mural featuring Ohtani on the wall of a hotel in the Little Tokyo district in central Los Angeles.

Vargas completed the work in Oshu in two days during a visit to Japan in March. He hopes the mural will become a bridge to convey LA culture to the Japanese city and that the artwork will also encourage people around the world to visit the city. The work was unveiled on Sept. 1.

The LA mural, meanwhile, has already become a popular tourist attraction.