Baseball

Taiwan Honors Baseball Legend Oh for Contribution to Sport, Japan-Taiwan Ties

Courtesy of Taiwan’s Office of the President
Sadaharu Oh, left, hands an autographed bat to Taiwan President Lai Ching-te at the Office of the President in Taipei on Thursday in this screenshot of a video posted by the presidential office.

By Masatsugu Sonoda / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

16:37 JST, February 27, 2026

TAIPEI — Sadaharu Oh, the chairman of Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, was presented the 1st Class Order of Brilliant Star by Taiwan’s Office of the President on Thursday.

He was awarded the honor for his achievements in baseball, his contribution to the development of the sport in Japan and Taiwan and the promotion of their friendship.

According to the presidential office, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te praised Oh during their meeting in Taipei on Thursday.

“Mr. Oh, the home-run king of the world, is a baseball hero known to everyone,” Lai said, adding that Oh’s career home-run world record “encourages baseball fans not only in Japan and Taiwan but also the rest of the world.”

Lai also referred to Oh’s induction to the Baseball Hall of Fame in both Japan and Taiwan and his being awarded the Order of Culture in Japan last year.

“He is the pride of both Japan and Taiwan,” Lai said.

“I’m now more convinced than ever that I made the right decision when I chose to play baseball,” Oh said after receiving the order from Lai.