Ever since his 2018 debut, Japanese phenomenon Shohei Ohtani has been one of the most talked about baseball players. A talent on both sides of the ball, Ohtani has been compared to the likes of MLB great Babe Ruth. He is currently signed on to the Los Angeles Angels. But before his arrival, there was another highly regarded prospect on the team – Mike Trout.

The duo has struck up a friendship in the years they have been teammates. Both recognize each other’s immense skills and respect them. But what happened when the two faced each other on opposite teams? The World Baseball Classic made this iconic moment happen, and fans awaited the Team USA vs Team Japan final eagerly. Japan ultimately won, perhaps in part because of Ohtani’s rousing speech beforehand. And while any captain would try to buck up his teammates, Ohtani’s words had a special meaning behind them.

Shohei Ohtani’s heartfelt speech about admiration was inspired by Mike Trout

It would not be a stretch to say that even most Americans were rooting for Team Japan to win the World Baseball Classic. They had reached the finals undefeated; while Team USA was good, Japan was something else entirely. On March 21st, in a rather dramatic fashion, Ohtani struck out his teammate Trout. And just like that, Japan won.

But before the two teams faced each other, Sho-time gave an inspiring speech in the clubhouse. He told his teammates to stop admiring the enemy and start thinking about defeating them. This particular line was inspired by something that Ohtani’s translator Ippei Mizuhara did. Japan team manager Hideki Kuriyama recently said that Mizuhara got Mike Trout-signed balls for everyone.

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Mike Trout Reveals How Superstar Teammate Shohei Ohtani Shatters His Confidence Despite Hefty $426.5 Million Contract

Only one player had asked for it but the Angels’ center fielder signed for everyone. And thus Ohtani addressed his fellow players, “Let’s stop admiring them… If you admire them, you can’t surpass them. We came here to surpass them, to reach the top. For one day, let’s throw away our admiration for them and just think about winning.” Who wouldn’t feel goosebumps after that?!

Samurai Japan’s victory didn’t faze Trout

The WBC finale was one game that baseball fans all over the world eagerly awaited. The war may have been fought between two countries but it was also a battle between Trout and Ohtani. However, the Japanese star striking out his fellow Angel in the bottom of the ninth didn’t daunt Trout. In fact, the only response he had was, “He won Round One.”

WATCH THIS STORY –  Japanese Two-Way Baseball Star Shohei Ohtani Hits 100th Major League Home

That certainly makes one wonder when these two are going to face each other again. And who will be the winner this time? What do YOU think?