Shohei Ohtani’s historic first season as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers was capped off with the team winning its eighth World Series championship in franchise history.
Ohtani spent the first six seasons of his MLB career with the Los Angeles Angels and did not get to experience October baseball until joining the Dodgers in free agency.
For Ohtani, it was certainly worth the wait.
“I’m honored to be able to be part of a season where we played the longest, and to be able to get to know this team,” he said through translator Will Ireton. “My first year and experience winning a World Series has been a tremendous honor.”
The start of Ohtani’s first season with the Dodgers was embroiled in controversy due to an illegal gambling scandal involving former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara.
The situation took a toll on the two-way star, but he would eventually emerge from it and go on to have one of the most impressive seasons in MLB history.
Ohtani most notably became the first player to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. He accomplished the feat while being one of the constants for a Dodgers team that dealt with injuries throughout the year.
“We were able to get through the regular season, I think, because of the strength of this team, this organization,” Ohtani began.
“And the success of the postseason is very similar to how we were able to pull it off during the regular season. The strength of the organization. Extremely honored to be a part of this.”
Shohei Ohtani enjoyed World Series celebration
Ohtani winning the World Series with the Dodgers came one year after he led Team Japan to the championship in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
With that came some differences in the team celebrations. “I do feel like the celebration I’ve had in the past in Japan in WBC was a little bit toned down,” Ohtani explained.
“I was able to really enjoy kind of like the celebratory in a different way here today, and it’s been really fun.”
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