Did Shohei Ohtani's gifted Porsche contain a secret message for Joe Kelly's wife? Taking a closer look at Dodgers star's grand gesture

Shohei Ohtani made headlines in December for a variety of reasons, starting with his mammoth £700 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. His joining the Dodgers came on the back of, although not solely due to, the 'Ohtake17 campaign' started by Joe Kelly's wife, Ashley. The campaign let Ohtani know that Joe Kelly would give up his No. 17 jersey to Ohtani if he came to LA.

Ohtani signed and will wear 17 for the Dodgers in 2024. He then gave Ahsley Kelly a Porsche at Christmas as a thank-you. This made a wave of headlines across the MLB world and further enhanced Ohtani's reputation for kindness.

Interestingly, there may have been more to the gift than just a Porsche, as some believe there was a message on the number plate. The Kellys flaunted their Porsche in Ontario during the Dodgers' Community Tour, and people got a glimpse of the plate.

The plate reads DA39L17 and 39 means thank you in Japan, while 17 is the jersey number in question.

While it can't be confirmed whether this was a deliberate message from Shohei Ohtani without the superstar's affirmation, it would certainly be a happy coincidence if it wasn't.

Dodgers' Opening Day tickets soar after Shohei Ohtani signing

The Dodgers had a spectacular offseason and have seen themselves go from World Series hopefuls to favorites. This is largely due to the signing of the uber-talented Shohei Ohtani, who then helped the franchise land Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow. The Dodgers also signed Teoscar Hernandez in free agency and are stacked for a challenge in 2024.

Given the stars throughout their roster, expectations are high and everyone wants to see their new stars in action. Since Ohtani signed for LA, the price of a ticket for Opening Day has soared.

Before Ohtani's signing, the Dodgers' average Opening Day ticket cost $390.95. However, the average ticket for Opening Day now costs $983.71. This is going to be something of a trend for 2024 in general, with the average ticket price rising from $171.67 in 2023 to $295 this season.