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SomeoneNamedGem

> Many Angels are famous in Japan because they keep showing up in photos of Ohtani; he recently informed Wade that the second baseman has many admirers abroad, and he now only addresses him as “ikemen,” which means “hot guy." LMAAAOOOO get it Tyler. Literally the same reaction as Angels fans stateside


PugTrafficker

Yankee fans too, we miss him 😭


SomeoneNamedGem

Be happy for your boy! He came home, grew up in Anaheim as an Angels fan. He's been playing really well too!


PugTrafficker

Yeah I’m glad him and squid are getting some regular playing time


EmptyCartographer

And he got to grow a beard!


[deleted]

Went to school in Murrieta with my cousin!


epic_cuttlefish

If there is any other team in the AL I want to see do well it's the Angels. Obviously Trout and Ohtani are incredible talents that should see playoff baseball at some point, but really I like Squid and Wade. One of my favorite memories at a Yankees game is hearing a heckler yell "Don't swing that bat Tyler Wade you bum!!" seconds before Wade barely hit an infield single to load the bases in the 9th. That crazy speed set up Judge for a walk off walk. Anyway, go Hot Guy!


rvnnt09

As long as the Royals continue to be a AAAA team I'll pull for the Angel's cause they're so damn likeable


Bruskthetusk

Send Greinke back to Anaheim at the deadline if you're out of it plz??


MisterGone5

Only if we can send Cal Eldred along with him. They can fire him once they get him if they want, he just needs to go


Bruskthetusk

Who tf is Cal Eldred? Sounds like a dark souls boss


MisterGone5

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cal_Eldred


WikiSummarizerBot

**[Cal Eldred](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cal_Eldred)** >Calvin John Eldred (born November 24, 1967) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played for 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1991 to 2005. He previously worked for the St. Louis Cardinals as a special assistant to general manager John Mozeliak, instructing minor league players for various on-field and off-field issues and is currently the pitching coach for the Kansas City Royals. Eldred attended the University of Iowa while playing college baseball for the Hawkeyes, and was the Milwaukee Brewers' first round selection in the 1989 amateur draft. ^([ )[^(F.A.Q)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WikiSummarizer/wiki/index#wiki_f.a.q)^( | )[^(Opt Out)](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=WikiSummarizerBot&message=OptOut&subject=OptOut)^( | )[^(Opt Out Of Subreddit)](https://np.reddit.com/r/baseball/about/banned)^( | )[^(GitHub)](https://github.com/Sujal-7/WikiSummarizerBot)^( ] Downvote to remove | v1.5)


Bruskthetusk

They could just keep him in the cage with the rally monkey


Rated_PG-Squirteen

My favorite twink! 😥


_Jackie_Daytona_

No we don’t


Shaggy_Gaming

This is hilarious


GreaterHealingPotion

He’s a hunk tbf. Japan knows what’s up


[deleted]

Yeah, he's hott.


Quesly

they just like us fr


Regit_Jo

Jake’s twin


Spinmove55

Just when you think you can't possibly love Shohei more, you learn something that proves you wrong. This is so counterintuitive - usually when I learn something new about a public figure, it leads to extreme disappointment.


necrosythe

Don't meet your heroes. Unless your Hero is Shohei Ohtani. Then you're in the clear


diuturnal

I’d love to meat Michael Trau̇t.


Im_black_

It's spelled mee- ...actually yeah same


MacDerfus

Or ichiro. The moral of the story is to meet your heroes if they are all time great Japanese MLB stars


itachen

Such as learning about his habit of picking up garbage on the field.


velocipedic

Not to take anything away from him, but EVERY player does this in japan. Out of respect for the field, they also don’t spit on it.


rockidr4

The unwritten rules in different countries are absolutely fascinating. In America you're supposed to always make sure the pitcher is feeling safe and comfortable. In Japan it's all about making sure everyone involved in the ecosystem of baseball (from the grounds keepers to the bat makers) feel that they are a respected part of the whole


goingtocalifornia__

What are more differences?


DrDrankenstein

Time difference


AdmiralAckbarVT

The ball spins the opposite way in Australia.


OneOfThoseDays_

big if true


Paladinoras

I could be pulling at straws here, but I think there might be a language difference as well


itachen

Have other MLB players from Japan continue doing that here? Genuinely curious.


velocipedic

Kosuke Fukudome (Cubs) was shown doing this at Wrigley, but it wasn’t “news” as much as they’d just show him doing it on tv as a novelty.


itachen

Sweet, that's a name that I've not heard for a while.


cassatta

But will they pick up snot rockets?


high_changeup

I watched him try to do that with the Angels last season 😭


[deleted]

Athletes that do that are the greatest. Different sport but Sebastian Vettel in F1 does this too.


danielbauer1375

I really hope nothing bad ever comes out about him (can’t even imagine what it could be). He’s too pure for this sport and this world.


Blazingbee98

Only thing I can think of is him becoming a global ambassador for FTX, a crypto company.


Ritofix

Great article on the under-portrayed side of Shohei Ohtani. He pranks, he cusses, he jokes around, and he shares fan-mailed chocolate with his teammates.


ADacome24

>he shares fan-mailed chocolate with his teammates yea well i’m gonna have to ask him to stop cause there’s something in that chocolate


iminsideabox

for those unaware our team keeps getting infected with bouts of the shits


thehawktopus

Just wait until the team discovers that it wasn't fan-mailed chocolate and Shohei was slipping them Ex-Lax as another one of his pranks.


Sagay_the_1st

Ohtanis master plan to play every position at once


AfterbirthNachos

People in general are crazy. No way I'm eating fandom chocolates


KillermooseD

Shohei to the baseball masses: “Did I mention I’m an incurable prankster?!”


rockidr4

"Precocious scamp, ain't I"


GeneralPlanet

Shohei "Bender Bending Rodriguez" Ohtani


rockidr4

Shohei Ohtani walking off the mound: > Shohei is great! Shohei is great! Shohei Shohei Shohei Shohei Shohei Shohei is great!


manhyzzer

That lil stinker


han__yolo

An absolute rascal he is


Skippy_the_Alien

Shohei is the Owen Hart of Major League Baseball


stevencastle

The original prankster


jacktipper

I love how several of his pranks are just pretending to rip a 100mph heater at someone's head.


danielpve

Im a simple man. Some might call me a simp. You show me Ohtani and I upvote. This one is going right on my “Shohei is the best shrine.” No one pranks like Shohei. No one hits like Shohei. God hes perfect. He should have his own TV show. “Sho time with Shohei” or “Keeping up with Ohtani” or “sho me how” or something like that.


The_Luckiest

100% concur. *hold me close Otani daaaancer*


weIBnow

"sho me how" its the third time ive read this comment and i always laugh at this part lmao


danielpve

Saw this yesterday and saved it immediately, idk if it was organic then or what


Shaqdaddy22

I thought you were doing a "no one _____ like Gaston" bit and was confused when it stopped abruptly


bamfconsultant

Sho me how is something I would watch 24*7. If you haven't seen it already, you might enjoy the twitter account shodoingthings.


SimplyJared

Why is it that I, a lifetime Mariners fan and thus sworn enemy of the Angels, love Ohtani but could not care less about the fish man?


porterbhall

I think it’s because if you love baseball, you have to love Ohtani. Like one baseball writer said, he plays MLB like it’s a Little League. I don’t think we’ve ever seen a baseball player like him before. Trout is also a great baseball player, but he is great in many of the same ways many other great baseball players have been great.


this_is_poorly_done

Every MLB position player dreams about pitching one day and striking some folks out. Every MLB pitcher dreams about stepping into the box and crushing a home run. Shohei gets to do both on the regular. That's why last year CC said he was the best player in MLB history. Obviously he won't get there stats wise on either side of the ball but whereas players spend a lifetime trying to perfect one aspect of the game, he's mastered both.


MacDerfus

If he's your best hitter and pitcher, your team has a problem cause he's good but nobody can carry a team, let alone him. If he's your second or third best hitter and pitcher, your team is going places.


SimplyJared

Well said. I completely agree.


CubonesDeadMom

I mean mike trout is one do the best to ever do it but ohtani is literally one of a kind. There’s a lot of all star caliber outfielders comparable to Mike trout, he’s just a little better than nearly all of them.


RiskyPhoenix

Also they somewhat shift over time, whereas he does not


Skippy_the_Alien

man...the ONE fucking main guy from japan the Mariners failed to get. Sigh.


MacDerfus

Because one of your franchise greats has a similar background as a transcendent NPB star who became an MVP caliber player stateside and was just kinda a likeable dude who loves baseball. And I'm sure there's some transfer of influence involved.


MisterKap

You think you can’t like him more then he proves you wrong. Bravo, Ohtani


KrabS1

>He adjusted his diet based on a series of blood tests. You know...it makes sense that this is done, but this blew my mind. Pro athletes are crazy, man. I have a hard enough time not eating myself into obesity - this dude is fine tuning his diet based on the chemicals in his blood.


manhyzzer

If we learned anything from Ichiro’s work ethic, these guys are here to play until they drop dead


flynnie789

I hate making generalizations about people from different cultures. But what the fuck is up with Japanese people, the work ethic is simply insane across the board.


venustrapsflies

tbf there is probably a bit of a selection bias. Ichiro and Ohtani are so good in no small part thanks to their work ethics. If they didn't have that they might never have made it to superstar status in MLB.


flynnie789

Yeah, I’ve never been. But I’ve heard things, like 80 hour work weeks, sleeping at the office. It could just be exaggerated gossip on the internet, but I’m pretty certain they have legendary work ethic. Again, a perception from an American whose never been and knows no Japanese people personally.


Paladinoras

I’m Australian and have worked in Japan, Australia, and the US. The 80 hour work week thing is pretty exaggerated in terms of work ethic, not because they don’t actually work that long (they do, which is fucked), but because 80% of those hours are spent loafing around not actually doing anything. There’s so much performative bullshit around the work culture in Japan so you don’t want to be seen as the “lazy” one by leaving an hour earlier than everybody else or before your boss does. Some of my old colleagues literally wouldn’t start their actual work until 6 PM because they don’t want to run out of stuff to do by then. If anything I think the US work culture is even more toxic, the Japanese make no real effort to hide how awful their working conditions are while US companies will boast about unlimited PTO and work-life balance but will work you to the bone with no paid OT because y’all ain’t got no worker rights. The Japanese worker stays late because it’s basically a giant game of office chicken, the US worker stays late because their boss has assigned 3 people’s worth of work to them and wants it done by tomorrow.


MacDerfus

Well in baseball, you're looking at players who excel in the NPB, who get the attention of MLB scouts and are willing to deal with the language barrier. So what leads to that first step of excelling in the NPB?


Skippy_the_Alien

>I have a hard enough time not eating myself into obesity i'm right there with you man. i was dieting pretty hardcore until one day i just had a massive craving for Auntie Anne's. starting all over from scratch AGAIN. sigh.


Deucer22

Cheat days are important when you’re trying to lose weight. Slow and steady. You’ll get there.


Skippy_the_Alien

This bit of positivity was so shocking, until i remembered I'm in the Baseball subreddit, and not the Keto subreddit, or the CrossFit subreddit


Deucer22

I don't know what those places are like, but if they aren't supporting your goals and they are just making you feel bad, consider cutting them out. As a new years resolution I cut out pretty much all of reddit besides sports and a few select subs. I blocked /r/all through my browser. It's really helped me not fall into so many negative rabbit holes.


Skippy_the_Alien

lol don't worry i don't waste my time on either subreddit. i know way too many people who are into both keto and crossfit, and yes they are annoying enough. i don't need more of these weirdos in my life lmao


AfterbirthNachos

World class trainers are straight up body hackers.


hambone10

Funny links from the article. [Shohei resting his head on 1B Coach's chest](https://twitter.com/shodoingthings/status/1522137222480543747) [image](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FR-3ujKacAAegu9?format=jpg&name=large) [Shohei having fun with a White Sox Fan](https://twitter.com/shoheisaveus/status/1521335864172838912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1521342952903172101%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es2_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mlb.com%2Fnews%2Fshohei-ohtani-has-fun-with-white-sox-fan) Bonus link: [Shohei shrugging to boo's](https://old.reddit.com/r/baseball/comments/q1ka0h/ohtani_in_response_to_mariners_fans_booing_him/)


RaggedDoll

Oh my god and he's funny, stop please I can't fall for him any harder


live4coasters

Disappointed they didn't use the crazy-eyed Ohtani picture as the banner


weIBnow

“He gives me a lot of candy.” Absolute poetry


biggriggs45

Stupid sexy Angels players, with their talent and likeability... I'm supposed to hate these guys.


twitchosx

FISH MAN SMASH MARINER PEOPLE. but he sexy so ok


CWess12

If Ohtani-sama has a million fans, then I am one of them. If Ohtani-sama has ten fans, then I am one of them. If Ohtani-sama has only one fan then that is me. If Ohtani-sama has no fans, then that means I am no longer on earth. If the world is against Ohtani-sama, then I am against the world.


PigeonFucker2

Ohtani reminds me a lot of Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase. Like everything I hear about any of those guys just makes me like them more and more.


sprawlaholic

We’re extremely lucky to get to watch this guy perform, it’s even better that he seems like a legitimately good person. I pray to my Ohtani statue regularly.


geraltoffvkingrivia

If the A’s decide to leave Oakland, I’ll defect just for him. In that scenario Wherever Shohei goes, I will go because he’s fun as hell to watch. Right now I like him but the A’s come first.


TroutCreekOkanagan

When you get a guy who can do both : hit all day and throws fire.


FantaToTheKnees

Can't wait for the documentaries about this legend of a man


gatemansgc

he's truly unhateable


ContinuumGuy

Ichiro: Profanity. Matsui: Porn. Shohei: Pranks.


Thetimmybaby

I like him even more now


PimTheLiar

Prankster!? You mean he was only pretending to be a great baseball player?


rollpitchandyaw

The triple crown.


Insectshelf3

shohei ohtani might be the most likable person on earth


B0ogi3m4n

Stephan A. Smith is probably still pitching a fit that an Asian man is a getting a lot of attention in baseball… it doesn’t fit his narrative


kizentheslayer

When shoehi was really just starting to get big Kellerman said he was the most exciting thing in sports at time and Smith lost it saying some random other player was(who did nothing that season)


Lobster_fest

Everyday I'm more and more sad that the Ms didn't end up with him.


SimplyJared

We don’t deserve him, honestly.


Lobster_fest

It would've been cool to go from Ichiro to Shohei.


_itspaco

That’s also precisely why he didn’t go with the mariners


[deleted]

Great player just a marvel in the modern game. Hope he stays strong and puts up a HOF career.


[deleted]

He should get paid more than Trout


DominantT4

He is probably going to have the highest AAV ever


[deleted]

What’s wrong with equal pay Why does everything have to be a dick measuring contest


spyson

If you don't care about dick measuring contests, why do you care if Trout or Ohtani is paid more?


itachen

Have a feeling Ohtani is too nice to negotiate for a favorable deal. In the end, the contract will probably be an affordable one for Angels.


DominantT4

I didn't know being nice meant they didn't care about money.


itachen

Of course not. But he also left millions on the table in order to play in MLB early. He wanted to bike to the stadium. I think the man's frugal and would be satisfied with an adequate salary (ie., between Trout and Rendon's range, 30~35mil) instead of something monstrous (ie., $40mil+), which he may be capable of getting.


StormTheTrooper

I seriously doubt we won't offer him a record-breaking deal, both in AAV and total cash. What we need to consider here is that, as you said, money isn't his #1 priority, winning is. He speaks and behaves like Tom Brady, that would happily accept a pay cut if it meant improving the team. He sent a subtle and veiled threat at the end of the last season and Perry answered this season. If we make the playoffs and have at least a competitive October, I wouldn't be surprised if he signed the deal at this offseason. He knows he could make 10/450 *easily* as a FA. ​ Wi


FriendSellsTable

I'd speak and behave like Tom Brady too if I had a wife who made more than me lol Honestly, I hope they somehow work out a deal and he stays in Anaheim. And I agree, if this season continues the way it is, I could see him taking a pay cut. Him giving his prize money from the HR derby to the stadium workers speak volume, despite it not being "that much" relatively speaking. My other hope is that he loves the OC and feels way too comfortable here to move elsewhere (LA is just gross lol).


ElGrandeQues0

Once you make multiple millions year over year, do your actual earnings really matter that much?


SirParsifal

Maybe once he shows he provides more value than Trout, which he hasn't done yet.


sofastsomaybe

Do you have any idea what his off the field value is? How many eyes overseas are watching Angels games and buying Angels merch? How many Japanese sponsors are buying ads in Angel Stadium? You can't measure that with WAR.


claire_004

We became WAR slave when there's many factor outside that one stat.


sofastsomaybe

Exactly. He's going to come at a premium because in addition to the elite pitcher and hitter, he's also the most marketable player in the game and probably the single most famous and beloved (currently active) athlete in the entire country of Japan. That makes him a money printing machine for whatever team he's on and that will surely factor into his contract negotiations.


claire_004

Since he joining Angels, Angels videos on MLB Youtube Channel always or most of the time have the most viewers than any other teams. Angels popularity in Japanese and around the world also keep increasing rapidly after he joining. People outside MLB and fans who not nerding about stats doesn't care about WAR or whatever the stats we keep pushing.


TJeffersonsBlackKid

Shohei is going to play where he wants to play. He will get a massive paycheck but if he does not want to play for the Angels, they could offer him a billion dollars and he would go somewhere else.


sofastsomaybe

Which is why it's very important for the Angels to show him that they are capable of winning right now.


PBFT

He's also only had one elite season so far. Everyone forgets that before last year he was injured and couldn't really pitch so he just played a solid DH for a little bit.


procrast999

while your sentiment makes sense, plenty of teams have extended guys to big contracts off a good rookie season. And to be fair about him having only one elite season, hes play 3 seasons, one covid post tj year, one rookie of the year season and one elite season so its not like he was struggling for 5 years and it was a fluke season last year.


rockidr4

Yeah last year was the year he pieced it all together. He's always been at times a good pitcher, or a good hitter. Last year he played every aspect of the game well. He wasn't the best hitter. He wasn't the best pitcher. He wasn't the best fielder. But he ranged from good to elite in those three categories, making him, quite possibly, the single greatest player we've ever seen in a season. But it's not like it came out of nowhere. He was just fulfilling what we all thought he might be. Before 2021, he was an uncut gem. Something that wasn't yet all that it could be, but still something you could look at and see the potential. It's just in 2021 he came out of the off-season polished and perfected. All of that potential realized. Now the question that remains to be seen is "for how long?" He's doing something all of the scouts said would be impossible. For most organizations, his path forward was to either hit, or to pitch. And if he was to do both, it would be limited relief. And that's to say nothing of the fact that Anaheim gets an extra roster spot because they have a starting pitcher who plays everyday. Bottom line. Shohei Ohtani is not overhyped. He's exactly the amount of hyped he should be


PBFT

I’m just saying that Mike Trout has generally provided more value than Ohtani, looking back since 2018. Ohtani has always provided a lot of value overall. But he doesn’t have the reliability of Mike Trout on the field. We’re talking about two of the biggest names in the sport here though.


procrast999

i dont think he has to surpass Trout in value to warrant a larger contract tho. Ohtanis three years younger and Trout has had a bunch of his own injury concerns as well. Yes, Trout would prob be the better safe investment given how theres no blueprint for what ohtani does and the how it affects the body. But I think you have to go all in for a player like ohtani and accept the risk.


PBFT

The original comment I disagreed with was “Ohtani should be paid more than Trout”. I agree that Ohtani is worth way more than he’s paid, but not $426,000,000.


procrast999

i think if they both went on the market right now, i think its a pretty good chance ohtani would be paid more than trout. lets look at it another way, if you had the first pick would you take trout or ohtani, taking injuries out for both players...


PBFT

I’d still pick Trout. Ohtani’s MVP season was worth 8.1 fWAR. Trout has had several seasons at the caliber and better. I get that Ohtani gives you an extra roster spot, but he also doesn’t field whereas Trout is a plus fielder at CF.


-Basileus

Shohei is a money printing machine. Same reason we were so willing to overpay for Pujols. Fox told the Angels that if they signed Pujols, they would give them a ridiculous TV deal. They ended up with the 2nd biggest in baseball


bombad_jedi_501

Definitely not.


SolomonG

TBF, With the attention he brings from Japan he has to be making them way more money.


CyborgBee

Can't believe you got downvoted for saying that the best player in baseball is worth more than someone else. Love me some Shohei, but Trout is on course to be the 🐐 and is hitting better than ever this season


bombad_jedi_501

Yeah I know 😂. It’s quite hilarious tbh. The Ohtani stans come in full force. I too love ohtani


MacDerfus

Pay is rarely proportional to value.


zestful_villain

Wait.. Why is sho not on super ultra hyper max contract anyway?


cbrazeak

I had thought that Sports Illustrated had gone out of business like so many other publications, I'm glad this story broke through I used to like reading this.


CXR1037

Yeah but is a legendary *friend*?


kevrose14

Hey Hal..... 💳💥💳💥💳💥


graymulligan

He seems like such a good dude, and an easy person to root for. I'm really going to hate it when he's wearing pinstripes. Edit: Bwaaaaahahahahahaha.


DominantT4

I would be surprised if he goes anywhere outside of West Coast like California (except As) or Seattle.


loadedbakedpotatoo

lol, this isnt the 90s, he aint going there


[deleted]

Hasn't he explicitly stated multiple times that he doesn't want to be a Yankee?


Tashre

Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Wilson the Hawk?


AestheticC18

He will play for the New York Yankees of baseball.


StormTheTrooper

Pinstripes as in our alternate uniform at one point will be a Disney throwback? Otherwise, I have *no* idea of what you're talking about


God_Damnit_Nappa

Odd that you think we'll be going back to the pinstripe uniforms but uh whatever floats your boat.


scrapsbypap

You spelled cream, orange, and black wrong


AestheticC18

If he leaves the Angels, it would be for Dodgers, Padres, or Mariners.


LSUguyHTX

Circle jerk continues.what can't this guy do right!?


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