When you mention Shohei Ohtani, you can’t help but think of baseball’s highest paid star who has been called the greatest Major League Baseball player since Babe Ruth.

The two-way star and designated hitter, who signed a record-breaking $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2023, has proved his worth time and time again with achievements like beating the USA in 2023 to win the World Baseball Classic, winning the 2024 World Series, being named MVP twice, and then hitting a record 50-50 performance last season. That means he is the only player in history to hit 50 homers and steal 50 bases in a season.

But while this car-loving cult figure will be back pitching again in 2025 after a 2-year hiatus, having mended his left shoulder, Ohtani is well-known in baseball circles as a car lover, a practical joker and a philanthropist.

Ohtani pranked his manager Dave Roberts

Ohtani likes to play the odd practical joke—in good spirits of course—and one target of his attention recently was none other than LA Dodgers manager Dave Roberts who told Ohtani that he wanted a new Porsche. The record-breaking slugger had promised his manager he would gift him a new car when he broke the home run record for a Japanese-born player, which was held by Roberts. The manager’s request had come after the Japanese player gifted Ashley Kelly, the wife of Dodgers’ relief pitcher Joe Kelly, a silver Porsche Panamera in late 2023 when she offered her husband’s No 17 to Ohtani.

The Japanese star did break Roberts’ record and Shohei did end up gifting a Porsche to Roberts, just not the car he expected. In typical Ohtani prank fashion, Shohei presented his manager with a toy Porsche—the kind a 3-year old kid might ride—leaving it in a stadium carpark for Roberts to find. The manager got great enjoyment out of this prank, and made a point of thanking Ohtani personally while he was being interviewed by a gaggle of press. “Shohei is behind this, right? He caught me [out]. Is it a joke? I said I wanted a new car, so Shohei came and gave it to me,” Roberts said when he saw the Japanese player’s joke.

Roberts did not get the car he expected

Ohtani’s gifting of Porsches and pranking with toy Porsches comes from his passion of cars and his desire to make people laugh. The Dodgers’ hitter has a significant car collection, one that even Jay Leno would be proud of. Ohtani’s daily ride is a Porsche Taycan S, but his home garage also boasts a Rolls Royce Wraith, a Bentley Continental GT, Mercedes Benz S63 AMG, an Aston Martin DB11 and a very quick Tesla Model X P90D with Ludicrous Mode! Such a collection proves that he has great taste, and appreciates luxury, performance, hi-tech and speed, with many of these cars able to reach 162 mph—the speed of his fast ball—in under 8 seconds.

With all the strife going on in the world right now, we certainly need a bit of good-natured humor like this to lighten the mood. Keep it up Shohei. He hinted that he might give Roberts a real Porsche if the Dodgers win the World Series. I’d say that’s a strong possibility.

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