Ohtani reveals dog’s name, but won’t discuss Blue Jays or any other team

As the Los Angeles Dodgers officially revealed Shohei Ohtani to the public Thursday, the Japanese star refused to discuss any other teams.

However, Ohtani did reveal an answer to a question that has been on the minds of baseball fans since he was joined by his furry friend on MLB Network during the 2023 AL MVP announcement.

What is the name of his dog?

“So his name is Dekopin, that’s a Japanese name,” Ohtani said through translator Ippei Mizuhara. “I figured it’d be hard for American people to pronounce it, so he has an American name. It’s Decoy.”

Rumours had swirled throughout the off-season that “Decoy’s” name was related to one of the team’s vying for Ohtani’s services.

As the sweepstakes unfolded with a reported order from Ohtani’s camp to keep news of their negotiations under wraps, anything that might have given a hint to where the 29-year-old would sign became a major story.

“He was originally named Decoy,” Ohtani later said after being asked about his dog once again. “I kind of took that and made it Dekopin to sound more Japanese.”

Despite unveiling one state secret, Ohtani kept the majority of his press conference focused on his new club, choosing to forego any talk about the Toronto Blue Jays, or any other teams that were reportedly in the mix to land this off-season premier free-agent.

Ohtani did admit on SportsNet Los Angeles that he was aware of all the flight tracking happening the day before his decision. He said he thought it was funny, but was just relaxing at home with Decoy.

He also said that “every team (he) met with was great,” but wouldn’t go any further than that.

While there is sure to be more to come out about how Ohtani’s decision played out in the coming months, baseball fans can at least scratch one mystery from this winter off their lists for now.