Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani Makes Major Personal Announcement

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani is officially a father of two.

Late Friday night (which was actually early Saturday morning), Ohtani announced the birth of his second child on his Instagram account.

"We are again overjoyed to experience this wonderful day in our lives together," Ohtani wrote in a post. "Thank you for being born safely. We would also like to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has supposed us throughout this journey."

Last April, Ohtani and his wife, Mamiko, welcomed their first child — a daughter — into the world. This time around, the family didn't reveal the baby's gender.

"Welcome to the Ohtani Family!" Ohtani wrote last April.

"I am so grateful to my loving wife who gave birth to our healthy beautiful daughter. To my daughter, thank you for making us very nervous yet super anxious parents. I would also like to thank the Dodgers organization, my teammates, and the fans for their constant support and kind words of encouragement.

"I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to all the medical professionals and everyone who dedicated their support to us, up until this wonderful day."

The pregnancy for Ohtani's second child was even more private than the first.

Just two hours before first pitch on Friday night, the Dodgers released a lineup without Ohtani in it. Shortly after, the team announced Ohtani was on paternity leave and "is expected to be back at some point this weekend."

“I don’t know [when he will be back],” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I’m hoping [Saturday]. But I don’t know.”

Roberts said he didn't learn that Mamiko was pregnant again until "very recently." This week, the team knew that the birth was "imminent."

Given the successful birth of his child, Ohtani will likely return for Saturday's game against the Baltimore Orioles.

The Dodgers were able to win Friday's game without their leadoff hitter behind a three-run ninth inning that concluded on a Dalton Rushing walk-off.

Ohtani is in the midst of another dominant two-way season and is a leading candidate for the National League's Most Valuable Player award.

As a hitter, Ohtani is slashing .296/.418/.545 with 15 home runs, 42 RBIs and an OPS of .962.

As a pitcher, he's 7-2 with a 1.47 ERA across 73.2 innings with 78 strikeouts to 22 walks.

Now, he'll have some additional dad strength, just ahead of Father's Day.

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