As the Los Angeles Dodgers began their quest to three-peat as World Series champions on Thursday, each member of the team showed up to Dodger Stadium and found a surprise in their locker.
Shohei Ohtani, who has a sponsorship deal with Seiko, gifted each of his teammates a high-end watch from the company. Along with it was a note with a message from Ohtani, celebrating the new season and looking forward to another championship, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
Each Dodgers player found a gift bag in his locker when they arrived at the stadium for Thursday’s opener. Inside was a high-end Seiko watch. Outside was a tag which read, “Happy Opening Day!! Three-Peat!! – Shohei Ohtani.”
“Shohei has been really kind using his platform to help his teammates,” Rojas said of the four-time league MVP, who counts Grand Seiko as one of his many endorsement deals. “I know that watch, we’re going to keep it forever and we’re going to remember the best player in the world gave us a watch for Opening Day in 2026.”
The coaching staff was also gifted the watches from Ohtani, and manager Dave Roberts had a present for his players, as well:
Roberts and the coaching staff also received watches. Roberts did his own gift-giving. A bottle of Traveller Whiskey was waiting in each player’s locker.
The Seiko watch gifted to the players featured a smoky blue dial with a silver bracelet and a chronograph.
Ohtani has now given gifts to his teammates on Opening Day each year he’s been with the Dodgers. Last year, he gave all his teammates a pair of Beats headphones.
Dodgers receive new jewelry
The day after receiving their new watches, many of the Dodgers players also added a World Series ring to their jewelry box as the club held its championship ring ceremony.
The ring, which opens to reveal dirt from Game 7 of the World Series, along with a separate band for players to wear. The exterior also highlights the club’s nine World Series titles and celebrates the team’s first back-to-back in history.
In addition, the number 4,012,470 is etched on the bottom of the ring, honoring the number of fans who attended Dodger Stadium to support the team during the season.
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