Dodgers reliever Joe Kelly's wife leaves fans in splits after changing baby's name to welcome Shohei Ohtani: "An absolute GOAT"

It seemed like it needed almost every single employee in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization to convince Shohei Ohtani to join them.

Even the wives of current players got in on it. Pitcher Joe Kelly's wife Ashley Kelly went as far as renaming their child after Shohei in an Instagram video to lure the Japanese sensation to the other side of the city.

Kelly has played more than three seasons with the Dodgers since 2019. Starting off his career with the numbers 58 and 56, he shifted to number 17 in 2018. When the Dodgers were convincing Shohei Ohtani to join them, they had a word with Kelly if he would be open to shifting to a different jersey number, as the Japanese sensation wears 17.

More than Joe, it was his wife, Ashley, who readily made available Dodgers merchandise with the number 17 as part of her Ohtake17 campaign. Ashley posted a video of her husband's elaborate shirt collection and other memorabilia and offered to change the names in each one to give Ohtani a welcome gift. She even decided to rename their son from Kai to Shokai in honor of the generational player.

Dodgers fans were thrilled to see this level of dedication as they took to X, formerly Twitter, to voice their praise, calling the Kellys true franchise royalty.

"This is hilarious and adorable. Health and blessing to your recently renamed son, Shokai," one fan wrote.

Another fan wrote, "Ashley Kelly is an absolute GOAT!"

Here are a few other reactions on X:

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Los Angeles Dodgers the best fit for Shohei Ohtani

Only Shohei Ohtani can tell if he was wowed by Ashley Kelly's Ohtake17 campaign, but the 29-year-old seems to have made the right choice.

The 'Sho' will bring his services to the Dodgers, choosing them over close contenders Toronto Blue Jays, with whom he came mighty close to signing. The Dodgers have been World Series contenders for a long time, and the two-way player will only elevate that.