SAN JOSE, Calif. — Shotaro Morii has just finished lifting weights before a game on an unseasonably warm May afternoon in the Bay Area when he and teammate Itsuki Takemoto burst into laughter, their cackling so loud it most certainly can be heard out on the field.Morii is gaining attention as a rising three-way prospect from Japan in the Athletics’ farm system — a hitter and pitcher who unlike Shohei Ohtani also plays the infield. Countryman and baseball roommate Takemoto enjoys teasing Morii at every chance. They are having a blast chasing their big league dreams.“I love him!” shouts Morii, who wasn’t in the lineup for that May 20 game with the Single-A Stockton Ports at San Jose after he played second base a night earlier then started on the mound the next day. “He’s a funny guy. I talk to him about baseball stuff. He has played baseball in the United States like maybe three or four years. He gives advice to me.”Morii is quickly becoming comfortable in his new surroundings, speaking near-perfect English, too. It’s something he was determined to do in order to better communicate both on the field and in everyday life.Like many players from Japan, Morii has been inspired by Oh …
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