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The story
On 5ch’s “NanJ” sports board, a report that the mocking “*He is…” meme — used to needle Shohei Ohtani over his slump — had finally spread to American forums as well became a hot topic. The thread discussed how auto-translation features on social media now carry Japanese posts over to English-speaking readers, and how American fans have done a complete about-face over Ohtani’s postseason batting slump, with reactions split between those defending him and those resigned to saying “it can’t be helped.”
What people said
Saw that one on Reddit too
LMAO he's getting absolutely clowned on
Taiwanese NanJ posters' comments get talked about here sometimes too, after all
Ever since Twitter got auto-translate, Japanese posts get auto-translated into English over there, so it's become a normal topic now
The numbers don't lie
Well, if you eat 19 onigiri (rice balls), of course you end up like that
LOL his muscles have shriveled up
Even an NPB Central League pitcher (a league with no DH, where pitchers bat) would hit a little better than this
During the regular season he was in an MVP race with PCA (Pete Crow-Armstrong), so of course he couldn't afford to go on the IL
People are forcing the hate way too hard here
He doesn't even play defense, so if he can't hit, of course he's gonna get bashed
High salary, DH-only
Smith's on a bargain contract, and he's a catcher on top of that
Isn't he getting bashed even more than Ohtani over in America? Dunno though
In Japan, nobody but the most hardcore fanboy would defend him with 'at least he's better than Will Smith!'
*He's a two-way player (his signature "nito-ryu" title) even when it comes to rice balls
Then hurry up and go rehab on the IL already
oh miss spell
Haven't seen this bit in a while
https://livedoor.blogimg.jp/kinisoku/imgs/c/b/cb929bbe.jpg
American favorability survey: Japan ranks #1
If SoftBank tried pulling the same thing, there's no way they'd manage it
Honestly, the current SoftBank squad could probably pull that off with room to spare
Background and Key Points of the Discussion
The “*He is…” format is a familiar rhetorical device on NanJ-style boards — flatly listing a player’s accomplishments while loading them with irony — and what’s drawing attention this time is that it has spread all the way to English-language forums like Reddit. Behind this is the fact that X’s (formerly Twitter) auto-translate feature now lets Japanese posts flow directly to English-speaking readers, making it easier for internet memes to cross the language barrier. The thread also buzzed about how Ohtani — praised as an MVP candidate as recently as last year — has suddenly become a target of criticism following his batting slump in this year’s postseason. This isn’t really about one specific player; it reflects the psychology of fandom in a results-only sporting world, where praise and criticism can swing to extremes.
*This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (NanJ) thread “[Sad News] Shohei Ohtani Finally Gets Played With the “*He is…” Meme Even in America….”
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