Shohei Ohtani’s every step, swing and smile were intensely followed this week during his homecoming at the Tokyo Dome, an event that would make most mortals wilt under the pressure.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto had a little extra zip on his fastball. Shohei Ohtani even admitted to some nerves. There was little doubt this was no ordinary baseball game. But the Japanese players who were playing in front of their home country at the Tokyo Dome on Tuesday night handled any jitters they had quite well,