Los Angeles Angels fans love seeing Shohei Ohtani joking around with opponent after being hit by a pitch: "The greatest player and the nicest guy", "How can u not root for this guy"

The Japanese superstar put on another season for the record books (literally). He did so in the way he's always done throughout his career: without forgetting to play the game of baseball lightheartedly.

In the penultimate game of the season, Ohtani's Angels matched up against the Oakland Athletics. The Angels lost to the Athletics in extra innings 2-1 but a memorable moment from the game saw Ohtani get hit by a pitch.

During the third inning, Oakland starter Cole Irvin accidentally plunked Shohei Ohtani with a curve ball that hit his right arm. This should have been a cause for concern for the Angels' coaching staff as the two-way wonder was supposed to start the game on the bump the following day.

Ohtani looked like he was in pain as he sat down for a few seconds before walking towards first base. Upon approaching first base, however, he jokingly mouthed off to Oakland Athletics first baseman Seth Brown the word "tomorrow." He was perhaps suggesting that he would take revenge after being hit by a pitch.

This inevitably evoked multiple reactions from Angels fans, with one of them tweeting:

The Angels star then laughed it off with Brown after the first baseman was quoted as saying, "Don't do that to me, please."

Shohei Ohtani stayed in the game but unfortunately went hitless in the contest. His reaction to getting plunked, meanwhile, drew admiration from Angels fans and neutrals alike as he embodied the lighter side of the game.

Shohei Ohtani has proven time and again that he is a class act. He's also an inspiration to the younger generation on how baseball players should behave. His lighthearted and kind approach to the game has resonated with a massive proportion of the general baseball audience.

Shohei Ohtani makes history on the final day of the season

Death, taxes, and Shohei Ohtani breaking records: these are the only constant things in life.

During the final game of the 2022 season against the Athletics, Ohtani set another record. After pitching a clean first inning, he became the first player in the World Series era of baseball to qualify both as a pitcher and hitter.

The minimum requirement to be included in the charts is 162 innings pitched and 502 plate appearances. The two-way sensation's final count amounted to 166 total innings pitched and 666 plate appearances.

Ohtani, the reigning MVP, finished his season with a 15-9 win-loss record with a 2.33 ERA on the mound, and a .273 average. He recorded 34 home runs and 95 RBIs at the plate.

About the author

Daniel Santiago is a journalist who has been reporting on baseball at Sportskeeda since 2022. He was drawn towards the sport after the underlying statistics and the analysis surrounding it grabbed his attention.

Daniel particularly enjoys furnishing reports about historic events in baseball and analyzing the game through a statistic-based outlook, based on Fangraphs and Baseball-Reference. This is in line with how he enjoyed watching baseball as a pastime. As a writer, he is very particular about cross-checking from reputable sources and doing his due diligence.

He became a lifelong Hideki Matsui fan after his exploits in the 2009 World Series for the New York Yankees. Among the current generation, Daniel's favorites include Shohei Ohtani and Jung Hoo Lee. Daniel is a huge follower of Asian baseball and both Ohtani and Lee have been in the top echelon of their respective leagues during their time with the NPB and KBO.

His favorite moment as a baseball fan was the final at-bat of the 2023 World Baseball Classic between Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout. He believes there aren't many words to fittingly describe the intensity of the moment.

As an avid sports fan, Daniel watches other sports and Esports when not writing about baseball.

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