Baseball

Shohei Ohtani Makes Rare Public Appearance with Wife at Dodgers’ Charity Event

AP Photo
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani, left, and his wife Mamiko pose together at the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation’s 2024 Blue Diamond Gala, Thursday, May 2, 2024, at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

By Toshiaki Obitsu / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

16:15 JST, May 3, 2024

LOS ANGELES – Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani made a rare public appearance with his wife Mamiko when the two attended a team charity event in Los Angeles on Thursday.

It was the first time the two appeared together in public since they were seen at Incheon Airport in March in Seoul, where the Dodgers’ opened the Major League Baseball season against the San Diego Padres.

For Thursday’s event, the two were both dressed in black and wore wedding bands. Ohtani had just returned to Los Angeles from a nine-game road trip.

“I heard [the event] has a tradition, and I was looking forward to it,” Ohtani said of the Blue Diamond Gala, which was organized by the Dodgers’ ownership group and featured a concert by Emmy-winning singer Ed Sheeran.

Ohtani, who joined the Dodgers as a free agent from the Los Angeles Angels, has completed his first month with his new team.

“The season has just started, so I think it will get tougher ahead,” Ohtani said of his life off the field, adding, “But I’m gradually getting a rhythm to my lifestyle, and as I get more accustomed to things, it will all become easier.”