“Well it was a strike. He should know”; “Absolute pathetic job by the umpire” – Shohei Ohtani’s call leaves MLB fans angry and other

Shohei Ohtani is not one to attract attention from himself. Apart from his outstanding performances on the field, the Dodgers star rarely mixes it up, and virtually never shows any signs of dissent. However, on Tuesday, fans got to see a rare side of the superstar.

It was the ninth inning of the Dodgers’ game between the Padres at Petco Park on Monday when Ohtani stepped up to face Friars reliever Jeremiah Estrada. With two strikes and LA up 5-3, Estrada’s two-strike delivery landed on the lower border of the strike zone, causing home plate umpire Dan Iassogna to ring Ohtani up on strikes.

“Shohei got rung up on a called strike three. This is about the strongest reaction you’ll get from Shohei Ohtani.” – Doug McKain
Although the pitch was a borderline strike, Shohei Ohtani seemed surprised with Iassogna’s call. While Ohtani was more passive than many of his MLB countparts in similar situations, the 30 year-old was visibly upset. Ohtani kept mouthing “no” as he made his way to the dugout. Fans have already begun to take to social media with their own takes on the situation.

To add insult to Ohtani’s frustration, the San Diego Padres would tie the game with solo shots from Jackson Merrill and Manny Machado in the ninth. In the tenth inning, Donovan Solano would single in the winning run, and San Diego won 6-5.

Still, some fans were not so convinced by Ohtani’s case:

“Well it was a strike. He should know.” – commented one fan
“It looks like a strike to me” – claimed another
“Problem #1 is it was a strike. Problem #2 is Ohtani doesn’t like the low pitch and usually lets them go.” – opined a third critic
Although onlookers were split about the call itself, there seemed to be agreement that this side of Shohei Ohtani is certainly a rare sight. Several of the comments pertained to the newly-found demeanor of the Los Angeles Dodgers star:

“Being with the dodgers is changing him. Sense of entitled growing.” – said a fan
“English is getting better” – was another joke
“Never seen him get so angry” – observed another
Shohei Ohtani’s confidence grows by the day
For most of his MLB career, Ohtani was never seen as one willing to mix it up with umpires or show much emotion at all. While the incident on Tuesday was far from an outburst, it shows that the $700 million superstar is comfortable taking charge, which is what the Dodgers probably want to see.