Shohei Ohtani visited the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo, where Ambassador Rahm Emanuel presented the new Los Angeles Dodgers star with a supersize visa for his dog.
Emanuel posted photos of the visit on social media Thursday, with the embassy saying it occurred recently when Ohtani was back in Japan.
Emanuel and Ohtani posed with a replica visa for the player’s dog, Decoy. It shows a photo of the dog, whose Japanese name is Dekopin, and gives his birth date as “dog years” and shows the canine has dual American and Japanese citizenry.
Is it showtime or is it Sho-time!? Thrilled to meet trailblazing two-time @MLB MVP Ohtani-san again – my lucky day. Maybe next time I’ll be fortunate enough to meet his MVPup, Decoy – this “visa” should help? I promise my bark is worse than my bite! ⚾️🐾@Dodgers @DodgersNation pic.twitter.com/hzPZRPYnSn
— ラーム・エマニュエル駐日米国大使 (@USAmbJapan) January 11, 2024
“Thrilled to meet trailblazing two-time MLB MVP Ohtani-san again,” Emanuel posted on X, formerly Twitter. “Maybe next time I’ll be fortunate enough to meet his MVPup, Decoy.”
Emanuel previously met Ohtani at the U.S. Embassy in March 2023, when the two-way player was with the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani signed a $700 million, 10-year deal to join the Dodgers in December.