Shohei Ohtani high-fives heckler after hitting 45th home run of season
Shohei Ohtani celebrates with the San Diego Padres fan who had been heckling him throughout the game.
By Julia Andersen, CNN
(CNN) — Well, that’s one way to silence a heckler.
Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani hit a home run in the top of the ninth to cap off Sunday’s 8-2 win against the San Diego Padres, but it wasn’t the home run off Yuki Matsui that had everyone talking; it’s what Ohtani did after rounding the bases.
Before joining his teammates in celebration, the 31-year-old took a detour to the Padres fan sitting directly next to the visitor dugout.
The fan’s voice could be heard on field mics throughout the broadcast reminding the three-time MVP of his struggles in the batter’s box throughout the series. Ohtani was sitting at 0-10 – unusual for him – before the homer.
So, after hitting his 45th home run of the season, Ohtani, with a huge smile on his face, ran up to the fan and gave him a high five and a pat on the back.
The camera cut to the fan who appeared to shake his head while smiling after the interaction. He was then seen laughing while talking to those around him. All in good fun, it seems.
“Very annoying, as he’s in my right ear the entire game. But it was very out of character for Shohei and he was wearing him out the whole game,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after the game. “It was good to see Shohei, you know, initiate a high five from him.”
The skipper added with a smile, “That was great. That was fun. It was good to see Shohei show his personality.”
Ohtani certainly wasn’t the only Dodgers player struggling earlier in the series as their offense only scraped together two runs total in the opening two games – both LA losses – before exploding on Sunday.
His projected 409-foot home run to right-center came with Los Angeles already up by five in the ninth. It was the cherry on top of a dominant outing for the defending World Series champions.
The win moved the Dodgers level with their division rivals in the NL West, but with San Diego losing 6-9 to the Seattle Mariners and the Dodgers blowing out the Cincinnati Reds 7-0 on Monday, LA now has a game lead in the back-and-forth division race.
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