Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, whose career has been likened to baseball great Babe Ruth’s legendary start in pro ball, was upstaged on Wednesday night by his own dog.
The player’s pup Decoy, “threw out” the ceremonial first pitch before a game against the Baltimore Orioles.
Ohtani carried Decoy — who wore his own custom jersey — to the pitcher’s mound, where the dog waited for his owner’s signal to pick up the ball with his mouth before running it to Ohtani behind the plate. The designated hitter got a high-five from his furry friend and rewarded him with a treat. The play was met with raucous applause from the sellout crowd of more than 53,000 people at Dodger Stadium.
"I think I was more nervous with the ceremonial pitch than Decoy," Ohtani told reporters after the game through a translator. "I'm glad everything went well."
The Japanese player said it took him three weeks to train Decoy, a Dutch Kooikerhondje.
“It was a really special night,” Ohtani said. “I hope to buy a special snack for him.”
The 30-year-old pitcher-hitter is looking to make Major League history as the first player to notch 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases (He's currently eight away on both counts). But his dog is the first canine to perform the ceremonial pitch at a Dodgers game, according to ESPN.
Decoy impressed the Dodgers manager
“I was really impressed that that dog was already that trained,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I guess if it’s Shohei’s dog then nothing should be that surprising.”
Decoy made his MLB debut last year when Ohtani revealed the name of his dog, after the Dodger was awarded his second American League MVP title.
“His name is Dekopin,” Ohtani told reporters at the time. “That’s a Japanese name. I figured it’d be hard for American people to pronounce it. He has an American name, it’s Decoy.”
“Dekopin” is Japanese for “flicking someone’s forehead.”
The gesture is a popular prank among schoolchildren in Japan, reported Kyodo News.
Decoy’s star turn follows a newsy summer for canine baseball celebrity. Last month, a 13-year-old dog named Layla retired from her bat retrieval duties after six years with a Philadelphia Phillies minor league team, the Clearwater Threshers. Her successor, Lucy May, went viral this past weekend for an impromptu potty break on her first night on the job.
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