Nod your head if you think Shohei Ohtani is the best dog dad in baseball.
The Dodgers superstar is certainly making a good case ever since introducing Decoy to the world while receiving his second MVP Award in November. In the span of a little less than a year, Ohtani made his dog’s name a state secret of national importance, got Decoy a fake passport, wore an image of him on the inside of his suit on the All-Star red carpet and slipped into custom Decoy cleats for Players’ Weekend.
In Ohtani’s latest and perhaps greatest display of affection for his pup, he brought Decoy to the ballpark for the pooch’s own bobblehead night, which was highlighted by his dog throwing out the first pitch (first fetch?). And what did Ohtani then do as a tribute on his pup’s big night? He homered in his first at-bat, not more than 20 minutes after Decoy had taken the mound, for his 42nd of the season.
The Dodgers gave away a “Shohei & Decoy” figurine for which fans started lining up before noon outside Dodger Stadium. Ohtani’s solo bobblehead night in June drew a crowd of 53,527 to the park, and Wednesday night’s crowd was just as prodigious. There were so many fans congregating so early that even Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had a tough time getting into the stadium.
“I’m just happy that I made it,” Roberts joked. “It’s unbelievable. I don’t know if it was Shohei or Decoy or a combo, but there’s a high demand for this dang bobblehead. It took me forever to get inside Dodger Stadium. There was a long line. If you plan on coming, you better have already left.”
For a special treat (not the kind that Decoy is accustomed to), the Dodgers were including a limited number of a gold version of the bobblehead. One of those was underestandably reserved for Ohtani, who was gifted the bobblehead when he arrived at the stadium on Wednesday.
Ohtani posed for a photo with the bobblehead in one hand and real life pup in the other, and Decoy was even caught staring with intrigue at it while nestled in his owner’s arms.
The pup of the hour later made his first on-field appearance for the ceremonial first pitch before the game against the Orioles. Yes, you read that right! Decoy took the ball from the mound in his mouth and delivered a strike to Ohtani.
“Shohei’s been great,” Roberts said. “I think that he’s having fun with all the success obviously and promoting of him and his dog. It’s great for the Dodgers.”
And it was all yet another way for Ohtani to make sure his dog had its day.
