Shohei Ohtani is one of the most popular athletes in all of sports and always draws a large crowd of autograph-seekers before games.
Prior to the Los Angeles Dodgers facing the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on Saturday, the two-way star took the time to meet 100-year-old Momoyo Nakamoto Kelley, who survived the Nagasaki bombing during World War II in 1945, via Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic:
Shohei Ohtani just stopped to sign for Momoyo, a 100-year-old woman who survived the bombing of Nagasaki. pic.twitter.com/1wPunGIQI6
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) April 18, 2026
Ohtani had just completed a throwing session when Dodgers broadcaster Stephen Nelson told him of Kelley’s story. Manager Dave Roberts, Roki Sasaki and Rockies pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano — all natives of Japan — also posed for photos with the centenarian.
Kelley was 19 years old when the atomic bomb hit her Japanese hometown. She moved to the United States in the early 1950s and became a lifelong baseball fan.
Kelley, who now lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, attended Saturday’s game with her daughter and Colorado-based grandchildren.
She watched her favorite player, Ohtani, go 1-for-4 in the Dodgers’ 4-3 loss. His single with two outs in the top of the ninth inning extended his on-base streak to 50 games.
Ohtani also doubled on Sunday, and is now just two games away from tying Shawn Green’s L.A. record of 53. Duke Snider’s 58-game on-base streak is the longest in Dodgers franchise history.
Ohtani is expected to make his next pitching start against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park this week.
Dodgers making change when Shohei Ohtani pitches?
Ohtani did not start at designated hitter when he took the mound against the New York Mets on Jackie Robinson Day due to a bruise in the back of his right shoulder as a result of getting hit by a pitch.
Roberts suggested before the game that the Dodgers may continue only using Ohtani as a pitcher in some games when he takes the mound.
“I think that it’s something that I’m going to keep an eye on,” Roberts said. “If it makes sense, but not just kind of do it proactively. I think it’s something that the game, Shohei, it’s got to make sense to not have your best hitter in the lineup.”
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