As if anyone needed another reason to love Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani, add this to the ever growing list. Following his participation in the MLB All-Star game home run derby (which he ultimately lost on a “swing off”), rather than cashing his $150K participation cheque, Ohtani elected to split the proceeds between various Angels staffers.
All told, 20+ members of the Angels organization, from media relations personnel, to clubhouse staffers and trainers received cheques from Ohtani prior to the Angels game vs. the Seattle Mariners on Friday.
Ohtani became not only the first Japanese born player to participate in the home run derby, but also the first player to ever be selected as both a pitcher and a hitter. While his AL team would emerge victorious, Ohtani went 0-2 at the plate, but threw a perfect first inning on the mound.
The versatile two way player currently leads the majors in home runs with 33, and is second only to Vlad Jr in RBI’s on the season. He currently finds himself as the betting favourite to take home MVP honours this season at various sports books across the country. Whether he accomplishes that feat or not remains to be seen, however he’s certainly become a clubhouse favourite amongst Angels personnel heading into this weekend.