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Shohei Ohtani gifts manager Dave Roberts toy Porsche before breaking his home run record
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Date:2025-04-25 19:05:48
Shohei Ohtani has many more records to break over the course of his baseball career, but he may not have any more fun breaking one than he did Saturday night.
Ever since finding out that Dodgers manager Dave Roberts is the team's all-time leader in homers by a Japanese-born player, Ohtani and his skipper have enjoyed a running joke as he approached Roberts' grand total of seven. (Roberts was born on a U.S. military base in Okinawa.)
After Ohtani passed Hideki Matsui on April 21 for the most homers in MLB history by a Japanese-born player with his 176th, he deadpanned that he now had his sights set on Roberts' record.
In their back-and-forth with reporters since then, Ohtani and Roberts were both asked about the possibility of the slugger giving his manager a gift to commemorate the historic occasion. Roberts suggested a new car might be appropriate.
Before Saturday's game against the Atlanta Braves − with the pair tied at seven homers apiece − Roberts got the car.
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Later that evening, Ohtani got the record.
His solo shot in the bottom of the third inning off the Braves' Bryce Elder was his eighth of the season. And the torch was officially passed.
"He said he wanted a car," Ohtani said through translator Will Ireton. "I’m glad he’s happy. He got a car."
So what was the significance of the Porsche?
In this meticulously detailed timeline from MLB.com, we're reminded that when Ohtani signed with the Dodgers, reliever Joe Kelly had Ohtani's preferred jersey No. 17.
As a thank you gift for giving up his number, Kelly and his wife Ashley received a brand new Porsche courtesy of his new teammate.
So even though no one could blame Roberts for trying, he had to settle for a miniature version instead.
"I just want to say congratulations and thank you very much," Roberts said, the toy car in his hand after the game. "This is my car. The difference is Joe’s car doesn’t fit in my office. This car fits on my desk."
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