{"id":"1793751263397-sports-segment","slug":"ohtani-s-102-mph-npb-fastball","title":"Ohtani's 102 MPH NPB Fastball","summary":"Shohei Ohtani was born July 5, 1994 in Mizusawa, Iwate — now part of Ōshū — and played for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters from 2013–2017, winning the 2016 Japan Series and Pacific League MVP. He threw a 165 km/h pitch in 2016 that set the NPB record and remains the fastest by a Japanese pitcher.","publishedAt":"2026-11-04T00:14:23.397Z","channel":{"id":"sports","name":"Oncast Sports","language":"en"},"show":"The Pregame","verification":{"status":"verified","leadVerdict":"TRUE","notes":"TRUE: Shohei Ohtani was born July 5, 1994 in Mizusawa, Iwate — now part of Ōshū — and played for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters from 2013–2017, winning the 2016 Japan Series and Pacific League MVP. He threw a 165 km/h pitch in 2016 that set the NPB record and remains the fastest by a Japanese pitcher.\nSource: [en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ShoheiOhtani), [mlb.com](https://www.mlb.com/cut4/shohei-ohtani-threw-the-fastest-pitch-in-npb-history-c2011330 (https://x.com/geofactsx/status/2117011952006295556)","claims":[{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"Shohei Ohtani was born July 5, 1994 in Mizusawa, Iwate — now part of Ōshū — and played for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters from 2013–2017, winning the 2016 Japan Series and Pacific League MVP. He threw a 165 km/h pitch in 2016 that set the NPB record and remains the fastest by a Japanese pitcher.","sourceName":"[en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ShoheiOhtani), [mlb.com](https://www.mlb.com/cut4/shohei-ohtani-threw-the-fastest-pitch-in-npb-history-c2011330","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/geofactsx/status/2117011952006295556","claim":"🇯🇵⚾ SHOHEI OHTANI 大谷翔平 IN NUMBERS The two-way phenomenon 二刀流 of the @Dodgers 🗾 Born 5 July 1994 in Ōshū, Iwate (岩手県奥州市) 🇯🇵 NIPPON-HAM FIGHTERS (2013–2017) 🏆 2016 Japan Series champion and Pacific League MVP 🔥 165 km/h: the fastest pitch ever thrown by a https://t.co/0CkeLe","author":"GeoFacts (@geofactsx)"}]},"sources":[{"url":"https://x.com/geofactsx/status/2117011952006295556","name":"[en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ShoheiOhtani), [mlb.com](https://www.mlb.com/cut4/shohei-ohtani-threw-the-fastest-pitch-in-npb-history-c2011330","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"GeoFacts (@geofactsx)"}],"url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1793751263397-sports-segment-ohtani-s-102-mph-npb-fastball","listenUrl":"https://oncast.fm/c/sports","attribution":{"publisher":"Oncast","site":"https://oncast.fm","url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1793751263397-sports-segment-ohtani-s-102-mph-npb-fastball","cite":"Cite https://oncast.fm/story/1793751263397-sports-segment-ohtani-s-102-mph-npb-fastball and the original source links. Fact-check by Oncast (oncast.fm)."},"hostsSaid":[{"host":"Liam","text":"One hundred sixty-five kilometers an hour. That's the claim: fastest pitch a Japanese pitcher has ever thrown."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"Shohei Ohtani. I know that number."},{"host":"Liam","text":"GeoFacts on X posted the whole Ohtani in numbers thread: born July fifth, 1994, Oshu, Iwate."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"Actually born in Mizusawa, Iwate—now part of Oshu. The thread got the current city right."},{"host":"Liam","text":"You couldn't let that slide."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I'm the fact-checker. It's my job."},{"host":"Liam","text":"Fine. 2016 Japan Series champion. Pacific League MVP. Nippon-Ham Fighters."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"And the one sixty-five? That's one hundred two and a half miles an hour. Absurd."},{"host":"Liam","text":"People forget he was doing this at twenty-one, before Major League Baseball."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I'm not forgetting. I'm just saying one pitch doesn't make an ace."},{"host":"Liam","text":"He won the Japan Series and league MVP in the same year!"},{"host":"Marcus","text":"And he later had elbow surgery. That's also the resume."},{"host":"Liam","text":"You want to hold injuries against him? He's still the most talented player in baseball."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I hold mileage against any pitcher. That's not controversial."},{"host":"Liam","text":"It's not mileage, it's history. There's a difference."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"Tell that to the ligament."},{"host":"Liam","text":"Fine. Let's talk history. The guy threw one hundred two and a half before he got to the Dodgers."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"And he could hit. That's the whole problem with the one pitch argument."},{"host":"Liam","text":"How is it a problem?"},{"host":"Marcus","text":"Because people think 2016 Ohtani is the same as 2026 Ohtani. He's not."},{"host":"Liam","text":"He's still the best two-way player on earth."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"When healthy. Those two words are doing a lot of work."},{"host":"Liam","text":"Then let's remove them. If he's healthy this year, what do you want to see?"},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I want to see him pitch a full Major League season. Not a highlight, not a month."},{"host":"Liam","text":"I want to see him throw a hundred in the first inning and hit a homer in the fifth."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"You want the movie. I want the box score."},{"host":"Liam","text":"The box score is boring."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"The box score is real. That's my point."},{"host":"Liam","text":"So what, you're not excited?"},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I'm excited about the numbers he's already produced. I'm not writing the sequel before he pitches."},{"host":"Liam","text":"That's the most Marcus thing you've ever said."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I'll take that as a compliment."},{"host":"Liam","text":"Okay, let's argue the big question: should the Dodgers even let him pitch again?"},{"host":"Marcus","text":"If he's healthy? Yes. The arm is too valuable to sit."},{"host":"Liam","text":"I think they should protect the bat and use him as a closer at most."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"A closer? That's a waste. You don't spend a decade developing a front-line starter to use him in the ninth."},{"host":"Liam","text":"You do if every start risks the bat. The bat's worth more."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"The bat wins MVPs. The arm wins championships."},{"host":"Liam","text":"They won a World Series with him in the lineup. I'm not sure they need the arm."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"That's one title. A healthy Ohtani pitching gives you three more."},{"host":"Liam","text":"Or it gives you a torn ligament and no Ohtani at all."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"Now you're playing scared."},{"host":"Liam","text":"I'm playing smart. The Dodgers don't need the 2016 Ohtani."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"But if they get it, the league might as well cancel October."},{"host":"Liam","text":"That's a big if."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"It's the only if that matters. That's why the one sixty-five still matters."},{"host":"Liam","text":"The one sixty-five was ten years ago. You just said 2026 is different."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"It's different, but the ceiling is the same. That's the whole argument."},{"host":"Liam","text":"So you want him to be 2016 again?"},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I want him to be 2026 and healthy. The numbers will take care of themselves."},{"host":"Liam","text":"Fine. I'll say this: if he pitches fifteen starts and hits thirty homers, it's the greatest season ever."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I'll say if he pitches fifteen starts, I want to see innings, not just strikeouts."},{"host":"Liam","text":"You're impossible."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"I'm consistent."},{"host":"Liam","text":"The thread says the fastest pitch by a Japanese pitcher is one sixty-five. That's real."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"Real and historic. I just won't let it make me forget the rest."},{"host":"Liam","text":"Then we agree on the talent, disagree on the risk."},{"host":"Marcus","text":"And that's why we're here."}]}