In Major League Baseball, when teams negotiate with star free agents, it is common for franchise players to participate in meetings or send personal video messages.

Beyond money, these gestures are meant to communicate something deeper:

“We truly want you here.”

When Shohei Ohtani first moved from the Nippon-Ham Fighters to MLB, the Dodgers had Clayton Kershaw play that role in recruiting him.

At the time, however, Ohtani ultimately chose the Angels instead of the Dodgers.

There were even stories that Kershaw briefly felt disappointed or frustrated by that decision.

But after becoming teammates during the 2024 season, the two developed a strong mutual respect and friendship.

Years later, after Ohtani himself signed with the Dodgers in December 2023, he found himself in the recruiter’s role.

At the time, pitcher Tyler Glasnow was still with the Tampa Bay Rays.

Ohtani sent him a video message saying:

“As far as I’m concerned, I’d really love for you to sign with the Dodgers. If you do, I’ll hit as many home runs as I can for you and for this team.”

Glasnow ultimately chose to join the Dodgers.

And in 2024, he made 22 starts and finished with a strong 9–6 record.

What made the story remarkable was what Ohtani did afterward.

In seven of Glasnow’s starts, Ohtani hit a home run.

In other words, he genuinely backed up the promise he had made.

It was not just polite recruiting talk.

Ohtani turned his own words into action.

And by doing so, he earned Glasnow’s trust — not through speeches, but through performance.

That has always been one of Ohtani’s defining traits:

when he says something, he tries to prove it on the field.

Source

This quote comes from a Japanese book published in Japan and is not currently available in English.

SHO-TIME 3.0: Shohei Ohtani and His First World Series Championship in a New Land, p.54