Watch: Shohei Ohtani brings humor to his June HBP by sharing a playful exchange with Robert Suarez before All-Star game

As Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers faced their arch-rivals, the San Diego Padres, the two teams' animosity towards each other was on full display. Alongside the high-quality baseball being played, there were also eight separate HBP incidents during the most recent series between the teams, which took place at Dodger Stadium.

One such incident involved Shohei Ohtani being hit flush in the side by a 100-mile-per-hour missile by Padres closer Robert Suarez, which led to the Venezuelan's ejection from the game.

Though most would assume there would be bad blood between the pair after such an incident, Shohei Ohtani cleared up any such misconceptions on Tuesday, as he was spotted playfully joking about the HBP with Suarez in Atlanta.

Shohei Ohtani joking about his HBP from June with Robert Suárez byu/u8myramen_y inbaseball

Both Ohtani and Suarez are set to be on the same team on July 15, as they represent the NL at this year's All-Star game. So far this season, Ohtani has been batting .276 with 32 home runs and 60 RBIs, while Suarez has 28 saves, a 2-4 record, 3.54 ERA and 43 strikeouts.

With the NL having won only one of the last eleven mid-season classics, Ohtani and Suarez will hope to play a key role in improving that record on Tuesday.

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Shohei Ohtani talks about how managing the burden of pitching and hitting together is 'normal' for him

Amongst all the currently active big leaguers, Shohei Ohtani is definitely one of one. It is rare enough to see a player that can hit as well as the 31-year-old does, but combined with that, his ability to pitch at a high level, well and truly makes him a unicorn.

Over the years, there have been players and experts alike who have described Ohtani's two-way abilities as 'superhuman'. As Ohtani himself told analyst Pat McAfee, however, it is something that he finds quite 'normal,' having done it pretty much all his life.

"Of course, there are some hardships of being able to pitch and hit at the same time. But, I grew up doing both throughout my whole life, aside from a couple injuries that I had here and there. For me, it's pretty normal." Ohtani said on Monday, via his translator Will Ireton.

He's started five games in 2025, posting a 1.00 ERA in nine innings. His longest start came on Saturday against the San Francisco Giants, when he threw three scoreless innings. The Dodgers have been cautious about Ohtani's return to the mound.

Once the All-Star game is done and dusted, and the second half of the regular season begins, fans will be hoping Shohei Ohtani can continue dominating both on the mound and at the plate.