Give this bat boy some of that deferred money owed to Shohei Ohtani.
A Dodgers bat boy provided the save of the season Wednesday in Chicago when he caught a rocketed foul ball headed Ohtani’s way in the dugout during the Dodgers’ 4-0 win over the White Sox.
Said bat boy made it seem easy while he saved the NL MVP favorite from a potential injury, shifting from casual mode to defense mode rather nonchalantly.
The individual stood on the dugout steps at Guaranteed Rate Field, with his right hand perched on his right leg stationed atop the steps and his left arm chilling on the guardrail.
Then, he saved the day.
With Ohtani stationed behind him, the bat boy, wearing No. 94, threw his hands up and somehow caught this screamer as the two-time AL MVP threw up his hands behind him.
In his “Action Hero” moment, he stood with the ball in his hands, his lips perched as if he was saying “ooh” and his right leg elevated like he had started his windup.
As the folks around him checked to see what happened, this hero casually turned and handed the ball to a fan in the stands.
The seven-second clip circulating the internet ended with Ohtani walking toward the individual and seemingly saying something to him — a “Thank you” would work — and the bat boy turning to the star.
The Dodgers certainly should be thankful for this bat boy since the Dodgers are already without stars Mookie Betts and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and an Ohtani injury would just add to the cruelty.
Ohtani is the NL MVP favorite at FanDuel with -140 odds in the aftermath of Betts’ injury, ahead of the Phillies’ Bryce Harper at +200, while putting together yet another stellar season.
His leadoff homer Wednesday set a Dodgers record for consecutive games with at least one RBI with 10, per MLB.com, and he’s slashing .322/.402/.643 with a 1.055 OPS after a 1-for-2 day with two walks.
He leads the majors in batting average and is second in slugging percentage and OPS, trailing only Yankees star Aaron Judge in both categories.
“There have been a lot of opportunities with runners on base,” Ohtani said via an interpreter, per MLB.com. “All I’m trying to do is have a quality at-bat, so I think it’s the result of that.”
If Ohtani does indeed pick up his third MVP awards this year, perhaps he’ll thank the bat boy who saved him from potential harm.
NEWS CREDIT
