Mookie Betts opens up on Shohei Ohtani’s fame struggle, Lars Nootbar brings apt Michael Jordan comparison

Shohei Ohtani is arguably the only global superstar in the MLB. Ohtani's dual threat in the ballpark and humble demeanor have struck a chord with baseball fans worldwide.

With fame comes loss of privacy, and Ohtani's teammates know all about it. Lars Nootbar, who played with Ohtani for Team Japan, and Mookie Betts, who plays with him for the Dodgers, discussed it on "On Base with Mookie Betts" on Friday.

Talking about the WBC final between Japan and the US, Nootbar shared that he hasn't seen Ohtani take batting practice. When he asked Betts whether Ohtani did it during the Tokyo Series against the Cubs, the shortstop said no, adding the reason.

"It was just too much," Betts said [From 15:18]. "Like, for him, it's really just too much. He can't really, like, take steps, and there is like, everybody in the world wants to be famous, right? Until you see a famous person have to live, how they have to live their life, and how Sho has to live. It's like, man, that kind of sucks."

Nootbar already knows how fans revere Ohtani in Japan and agreed that dealing with fame is difficult. He explained the Dodger superstar's plight with an NBA reference.

"Like the doc, the MJ doc that came out during COVID, where he's sitting there in his room smoking a cigar like, 'I can't leave my room' like, that's really him," Nootbar said.

Betts agreed that the reference was spot on, while Nootbar added that Ohtani is dealing with it perfectly. Ohtani is not the only MLB star struggling with fame. New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge recently talked about similar struggles in the US.

Mookie Betts and Lars Nootbar revisit the iconic Shohei Ohtani vs. Mike Trout battle

Shohei Ohtani vs Mike Trout at World Baseball Classic Championship: United States v Japan - Source: Getty

The 2023 WBC final set up an iconic battle between then-Angels teammates Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout in the game's final inning. Kyle Schwarber had homered against Yu Darvish in the top of the eighth inning, making the score 3-2, cutting Japan's lead to one.

Betts had experienced the iconic moment from the USA's dugout, but he wanted to know how Nootbat felt from Japan's dugout.

"He's [Shohei Ohtani] coming in the game, and it feels like this surreal moment. Like, in the moment you're like, 'Wait, this is, what is going on right now?' Like, 'this is crazy'. And he's jogging out, and you're like, 'This guy's a freak.' But you're right like, I was like, in that moment, I was like, I don't know anybody else in the world," Nootbar said [From 16:35].

Japan didn't score in the bottom eight, and Othani came to the mound for them next. A double play resulted in Betts grounding out while Bobby Witt Jr. (pinch runner for Jeff McNeil) was out at second, setting up Trout vs. Ohtani, which the latter won by striking out the former.