Before Lars Nootbaar had his first hit for Team Japan in the World Baseball Classic, the Cardinals outfielder was already a sensation.
His pepper-grinder celebration of twisting his two fists together had been adopted by Shohei Ohtani after a home run in an exhibition game, and thus it spread throughout Japan. A newscast showed a youth league team doing the pepper-grinder, and the anchors joined in when the camera cut back to the studio.
Nootbaar.
Already big in Japan.
And then he started hitting.
Batting leadoff and playing center field, Nootbaar singled to open Team Japan's first game of pool play in the World Baseball Classic.