On 'Ohtani Day' established by the Los Angeles (LA) City Council in California, USA, Shohei Ohtani (30, LA Dodgers) burst into congratulations with a home run.
According to local media such as ESPN on the 18th (Korean time), the LA City Council passed a resolution declaring May 17th as 'Ohtani Shohei Day.'
It is a combination of the month of May, which celebrates the cultural heritage of Asian-Pacific Americans, and the 17th, which symbolizes Otani's number 17.
'Ohtani Day' is celebrated during the period that Ohtani plays in a Dodgers uniform. Last December, Ohtani signed the largest contract in North American professional sports history with a 10-year contract period and a total value of $700 million with the Dodgers.
Ohtani attended a commemorative event held at LA City Hall on this day along with Dodgers officials, including manager Dave Roberts.
Otani said, “I am truly grateful to the LA City Council. “I would like to say thank you to the Dodgers and all the fans,” he said.
After returning to Dodger Stadium after the event, Ohtani appeared as the number two designated hitter in the major league home game against the Cincinnati Reds and celebrated the establishment of 'Ohtani Day' by hitting a two-run home run. Ohtani, who hit his 13th home run of the season, tied for the lead in all major league home runs along with Gunner Henderson (Baltimore Orioles) and Kyle Tucker (Houston Astros). Ohtani, who had 1 hit (1 home run) in 4 at-bats, 2 RBIs, and 2 runs, saw his season batting average drop slightly to 0.358. The Dodgers, leaders of the National League West Division, defeated Cincinnati 7-3 and reached their 30th win (17 losses) of the season. The gap with the San Diego Padres (23 wins, 24 losses), second place in the same district, is 7 games. Eli de la Cruz (Cincinnati), who reached 30 stolen bases for the season by stealing 4 bases in the game the previous day (17th), was silent on this day with 0 hits in 4 at-bats and 2 strikeouts. 스포츠토토맨