Shohei Ohtani breaks his bat on a single in the eighth inning against the Blue Jays on Saturday.Nick Turchiaro/Reuters
Toronto had a theory on how to deal with Shohei Ohtani. Other teams back up in front of him, mirroring his elaborate deference. Toronto went with rudeness.
It started with manager John Schneider complaining about the hat the team gave Ohtani when they were courting him, which he had the gall to take home. Every Canadian knows the rules – if you accept a hat, we are legally married.
“I hope he brought [the hat] back – and the jacket for Decoy [Ohtani’s dog],” Schneider said before the start of the World Series.
I think it’s great that the Jays are totally over this. If Ohtani sees Jays GM Ross Atkins driving by his house four, five times when the team’s in L.A., I’m sure it’s a coincidence.
Ohtani did what Ohtani does – killed us with kindness.
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“I really had a wonderful time getting to know them as an entire organization,” he said through an interpreter.
He keeps the hat in his garage, which is where I assume he mounts all the other heads he’s taken.
In Game 1, the Toronto crowd berated Ohtani near the end. The American sitting next to me in the press box leaned over and asked, “What are they saying?”
“We. Don’t. Neeeeeed. You.”
He was impressed. I could tell.
Ohtani heads back to the dugout on Saturday. The Blue Jays pursued Ohtani who ultimately signed with the Dodgers.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
In the movie version of this thing so far, the Jays aren’t the good guys. They’re the scrappy bad guys you like despite yourself.
Ohtani is the hero. He’s the nicest guy here, as well as the most talented. Those are the people who win in the Disney version of life, and – despite a lot of the hype to the contrary – in real life as well. But so far, he’s done nothing.
On the one hand, this is good for the Jays. On the other, what a bummer for everyone, and I’m including Jays fans. Who doesn’t want to see the very best at his best, even if he’s killing your team while he’s doing it?
Of all the things the Blue Jays are doing right, negating Ohtani is the rightest. Without him, the Dodgers’ offence is turning over, but it’s not purring.
As long as that’s the case, the Dodgers’ hitting isn’t a problem. Only the pitching. Which eventually brings us back to Ohtani again.
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What’s clear after the first two games is that these two teams are closer in finishing ability than any critic guessed. A couple of little moments involving a starting pitcher left to hang around too long decided both games. Each team has shown ruthlessness when required.
So what’s going to be the difference? Ohtani, still.
Since everything must constantly be unprecedented, though nothing short of an alien invasion is, a lot of people want to crown Ohtani the greatest player of all time. He isn’t.
He’s the greatest talent ever, but best ‘player’ suggests that you have mastered the game. Joe DiMaggio won nine World Series. Sandy Koufax was the MVP of the World Series twice. Those are the benchmarks for all-time’itude.
Ohtani’s got a ways to go. In the last World Series, he was a very tall garden feature (2-for-19, and didn’t pitch). He’s on roughly the same track this time.
Is Ohtani better than Babe Ruth?
Maybe he doesn’t care. Maybe he’s so inculcated in the team-first ethos that he truly believes his only function is to show up and try his best. Maybe he thinks the Dodgers are so committed to spending money like a small island nation that he’ll have a half-dozen more chances to get this right.
Were I him, I wouldn’t. Remember when Mike Trout was going to be the greatest ever? Like every other entertainment business, sports loves to kill its sweethearts.
But for that one remarkable game against Milwaukee everybody talked about, Ohtani has been averagely excellent, but not especially so, this postseason. How long until he becomes an Alex Rodriguez type? The sort of player whose ability is unquestioned, but whose sense of timing is up for debate.
Ohtani celebrates during the 2025 NLCS Game 4 against the Brewers.Mark J. Terrill/The Associated Press
The Jays have a lot of things to worry about in L.A. They don’t have to win every game here, but they can’t fall behind. L.A. is to Seattle as Mike Tyson is to a kangaroo wearing boxing gloves.
They have to worry about the heat – it’s going to be scorching for Games 4 and 5. They have to worry about Tyler Glasnow, the Game 3 starter sporting a 0.68 postseason ERA. They have to worry about Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman showing up ready to work. But mostly they have to worry about Ohtani.
If he is contained from the plate and the mound, that’s at least one victory in the next two games. This is the downside to having a guy who does everything for you. If he gets taken off the board, you’re in trouble.
Ohtani is different in a lot of ways, and the most remarkable might be the conundrum he presents to the average baseball fan. This is a guy you want to see do fantastical things, even if it costs your team.
The handful of Milwaukee fans who travelled to watch Ohtani’s Brewer-killing three home run, 10 strikeout night must feel anointed. They got the full Percy B. baseball experience – look on my works, ye mighty, and despair.
Would Torontonians like to see that? Just one game’s worth? I suspect more Jays fans than you think would. I don’t root for anyone or anything, but I’m on Team All-Time Performance here. Who wouldn’t want to be there when the seas part?
The Jays’ three-day job in California is to thwart that complicated rooting desire. They aren’t in L.A. to help anyone create an aesthetic. They’re here to crush dreams, including a few of their own fans’ secret ones.
Ohtani reacts after hitting a foul ball on Saturday.Patrick Smith/Getty Images