The Tokyo Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs is a full circle moment for Japanese baseball.

About a dozen Japanese played in MLB last season, headlined by Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. They came up through Nippon Professional Baseball and waited for free agency under the Japanese system, or were allowed to go earlier by their clubs.

Expectations are growing for the Japanese market to be a driving force for Major League Baseball's global growth strategy.

If MLB can get Japan to follow all its teams, “We do believe there are payoffs in the B’s: billions,” commissioner Rob Manfred said.

There was the crack of Shohei Ohtani’s bat, the roars from the Tokyo Dome crowd and the beeps from the credit card machines at the massive merchandise center selling boatloads of Los Angeles Dodgers a