Fact Check: Was Shohei Ohtani's gift to Joe Kelly's wife down to sponsorship reasons? Exploring the truth behind bold theory

Shohei Ohtani made headlines when he gave a Porsche to Ashley Kelly, wife of Los Angeles Dodgers teammate, Joe Kelly. The incredible gift culminated from a sequence of events that began before Ohtani signed his $700 million contract with the team. Let's quickly go through the story.

In early December, Ashley Kelly began the 'Ohtake17 campaign' on Instagram, where she spread the news that her husband would give up his No. 17 jersey for Ohtani and that they would also change the name of their baby Kai to ShoKai. While the latter was in jest, Kelly was willing to give up his number for Ohtani.

When Ohtani signed for the Dodgers, news broke that Kelly would be giving up his number, and then just before Christmas, Ohtani gifted Ashley a Porsche.

That caught the attention of the nation, as it was a truly incredible gift. However, there have been some rumors on social media that Ohtani gave Ashley the car for sponsorship purposes.

Shohei Ohtani is a brand ambassador for Porsche, so the theory goes that the car was an advert for the company. While that makes for a good rumor, there is, however, nothing but speculation to back it up.

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The host of "Dodger Talk," MLB Network's David Vassegh, has refuted the notion on X (formerly called Twitter):

"Joe Kelly told me he never asked anything from Shohei Ohtani for giving up #17 … Ohtani on his own decided to gift Kelly’s wife, Ashley a brand new Porsche that was delivered today."

While it's possible that Ohtani bought her a Porsche over another car model. as he's an ambassador for the company, the gift was likely just a way of saying thank you.

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Shohei Ohtani joined by Yoshinobu Yamamoto as LA Dodgers go all-in for World Series push

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been in the headlines daily this month, having landed not just Shohei Ohtani but Yoshinobu Yamamoto, too. With Ohtani on a $700 million deal and Yamamoto on $325 million, the Dodgers are committing to spending over $1 billion on two players.

Add to that the trade and five-year, $136.5 million extension for Tyler Glasnow and you can see just how serious the Dodgers are about competing.

With regards to Yamamoto, the New York Mets offered the same contract as the Dodgers, while the New York Yankees offered a higher average annual value. MLB Network's Jon Morosi reckons the leading factor was Shohei Ohtani's influence rather than just the money:

"Yamamoto simply wanted to be a Dodger and play with Ohtani, in no particular order."

As the two won the World Baseball Classic together, were set to attend the LA Rams vs New Orleans Saints game last week and have been seen around LA, it looks to be the case.