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Shohei Ohtani, the $700 million Los Angeles Dodgers star, was the suspected target of a bomb threat that saw police search Seoul’s Gocheok Sky Dome before the start of the Major League Baseball season.
Japan’s Ohtani, feted as a modern-day Babe Ruth due to his skills both pitching and hitting, was reportedly one of the subjects of an emailed threat ahead of South Korea staging the opening of the MLB regular season for the first time.
Police said an initial search of the Sky Dome, which is hosting two Dodgers games against the San Diego Padres on Wednesday and Thursday, the first of which was won 5-2 by the Dodgers, had found no explosives but added a second check would be carried out.
“We received a report about a potential explosive device, and searched the site, but we found nothing,” Kim Seung-beom from Seoul’s Guro district police told AFP.
“We intend to carry out another search before the audience is allowed to enter the Sky Dome later, before the game tonight.”
San Diego Padres manager Mike Schildt said he had “complete confidence” in MLB and the security in South Korea.
“We feel safe and we haven’t really given it a second thought, quite honestly,” he said.
According to Seoul’s Yonhap news agency, South Korean authorities received a report from an employee at the Consulate General of South Korea in Vancouver, Canada.
The person reportedly received an email threatening to detonate a bomb at the Sky Dome, targeting superstar Ohtani and others.
Written in English, the email was allegedly sent by someone claiming to be a Japanese lawyer, Yonhap said, adding South Korean authorities are currently investigating to determine if the email was indeed sent from Japan.
Ohtani won his second American League Most Valuable Player Award in six seasons with the Los Angeles Angels last year before joining the Dodgers in December on a 10-year contract worth $700 million (£549m).
He cemented his national hero status in his native Japan last year after leading the country to victory in the World Baseball Classic.
His popularity also translates to South Korea, where baseball is arguably the country’s No 1 sport.
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