Dodgers Fans Make Shohei Ohtani Feel Right at Home Where He ‘Used to Work’

Shohei Ohtani didn’t get the usual pomp and circumstance a special player gets when returning to their old home stadium. Arguably, he got something better: the atmosphere of an actual home game.

The 44,731 people in attendance Tuesday for the first of two games between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Angels at Angel Stadium made sure to let him know how much they appreciated him.

Before his first at-bat, Ohtani received a standing ovation. When he ripped a line drive down the right-field line two innings later, “M-V-P” chants greeted him as he reached third base.

“As a player, I feel very supported and appreciative of all the fans that are in front of me, in front of the team,” Ohtani said through an interpreter. “It makes a difference that they’re out here.”

Ohtani’s return to Anaheim on Tuesday came exactly one year after his last game in an Angels uniform. It was also the first time he played a meaningful September game at the stadium.

In March, the Angels gave him a video tribute. This time, they just put up a video board message listing his accomplishments as he walked up for his first at-bat. In the fifth inning, the description under his name read: “USED TO WORK HERE.”

“The biggest part of all of this is really being able to play at this stadium in front of the Anaheim fans,” Ohtani said. “That was the part that was special for me.”

The Dodgers’ 10-inning, 6-2 win marked the first meaningful September game Ohtani has ever played at Angel Stadium. With the best record in the National League and a 5.5-game lead over the Padres, Ohtani is finally on the verge of reaching the postseason for the first time in his MLB career.

Ohtani finished the night 1-for-4 with a triple, a walk, two runs scored and one run driven in. He came to the plate in the top of the 10th with a 3-2 lead and a runner on first but the Angels didn’t want him to cause any more damage. He was intentionally walked and the Angels opted to pitch to Mookie Betts.

Betts homered on the first pitch he saw from reliever Roansy Contreras.

“You’re picking poison when you deal with the first three hitters,” Washington said. “I wasn’t going to let Ohtani swing there, and I have all the respect in the world for Mookie Betts. I just was hoping Contreras could make a pitch and get us a ground ball.”

Ohtani came up with a runner on in the eighth, but José Quijada struck him out with a pair of high fastballs.

Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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