Superstar pitcher Shohei Ohtani was likely saved from a stray foul ball to the head by the Los Angeles Dodgers’ batboy while in the dugout.
During a game against the Chicago White Sox, the Dodgers’ no. 1 player was in the dugout wearing his batting helmet but seemingly avoided a shot to the face by a ball traveling at high speeds toward him.
Without hesitating, the Dodgers’ batboy caught the high-velocity ball by his shoulder with his bare hands as Ohtani lunged out of the way behind him. After looking around briefly, the batboy calmly placed the ball behind him and then seemed to soak in the moment as others from the organization applauded.
A trainer on the bench appeared to be in shock with his mouth still agape as Ohtani walked back to thank the batboy.
The Dodgers’ official X account praised the equipment helper named Javi for having a well-above-average reaction speed.
“Javi’s reaction speed saved Sho,” the team wrote.
The Dodgers would beat the White Sox 4-0, with Ohtani continuing another spectacular season hitting his 25th home run but taking just two at-bats. The Japanese slugger is in the top five in the MLB in all of the four major batting categories.
Although he is also typically one of the best pitchers in the major leagues, he hasn’t pitched a game in 2024 due to an ongoing elbow injury.
The team would be best to avoid any more injuries as MVP-favorite Mookie Betts was recently injured with a bone fracture in his hand after being hit by a pitch.
Betts is currently on a 12-year, $365 million contract that will pay a salary in the double-digit millions until he is 51 years old.
Ohtani, on the other hand, will make just $2 million per year until the end of 2033 with one massive catch; his contract is actually worth $700 million. That means when his contract ends and he is possibly retired in 2034 at the age of 39, he will get a massive $68 million per year.
The contract caused a lot of controversy over the fact that Ohtani will likely relocate at that time to a jurisdiction that doesn’t have as nearly as high of an income tax as California does.
Ohtani will be paid by the Dodgers until 2043 when he is 48 years old.
The star was recently caught up in a gambling scandal when his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, was allegedly busted by feds for stealing millions of dollars from Ohtani to pay off debts he incurred by wagering on sports with an illegal bookie.
Mizuhara pled guilty in early June 2024.
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