Baseball mania reached fever pitch in Japan on Friday with public appearances of national hero Shohei Ohtani and other Japanese players set to take part in MLB season-opening games between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs.

Hundreds of fans at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport lined up hoping to catch a glimpse of Shohei Ohtani, but they saw nothing of the Dodgers superstar.

After landing in his home nation, Shohei Ohtani took to social media with a simple message for his fans, helping to build excitement for the upcoming two-game set against the Chic

Hundreds of fans lined up 10 deep, hoping to catch a glimpse of the superstar on Thursday, but a temporary white wall was set up to shield the players in case they came through the arrival area.

Shohei Ohtani begins his second season with the Los Angeles Dodgers in his native Japan, taking on the Chicago Cubs in a pair of games at the Tokyo Dome

Ohtani spoke with SI to promote becoming the first baseball player to join the Fortnite Icon Series. The first baseball player named an All-Star as a pitcher and hitter and the first to record a 50–50 season, Shohei Ohtani is breaking new ground again: the first baseball player to join the Fortnite Icon Series.