Walker Buehler’s first question to his new teammate, Shohei Ohtani, might just regard the name of Ohtani’s dog.
After Ohtani signed a record 10-year, $700 million deal to become a Dodger on Saturday, Buehler threw out a guess as to the name, which had been subject to speculation after ESPN’s Pablo Torre said it was identical to one of the teams he was considering in free agency.
“So his dog was named Dodger after all?” Buehler tweeted after the news of Ohtani’s signing broke Saturday.
Not necessarily.
But “Blue Jay” or “Cub” doesn’t quite have the same ring to it as a dog’s name.
Ohtani’s dog first went viral after he was named AL MVP last month.
Ohtani was holding his dog and gave it a high-five during an interview with MLB Network, but never mentioned its name.
“The rumor I have heard is that Shohei Ohtani’s dog’s name — the reason they’re not saying it — is because the dog’s name is the name of one of the teams he is considering,” Torre said Friday.
Given the myriad rumors around Ohtani’s free agency — which devolved into tracking a private plane that he was not on and a Toronto restaurant reservation that he was not a party to on Friday — more confirmation might be required before we treat that as fact.
Buehler, thankfully, will be on the case when the Dodgers report to Spring Training in a few months.
“I’d like to think it was named Walker,” Buehler tweeted, “but I guess I’ll find out soon.”
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