The glow around Los Angeles Dodgers‘ Shohei Ohtani is dimming, and this time it’s not from another scandal involving his interpreter or a lawsuit tied to a luxury housing project. Instead, the latest blow to his supposedly flawless reputation comes from the unfiltered honesty of a Little Leaguer.
During ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball KidsCast, Australian player Monica Arcuri—one of the breakout personalities of this year’s Little League World Series—didn’t hesitate when asked about her encounter with Ohtani back in 2023. She called him out bluntly: “He’s not really humble. Not my style.” That wasn’t a bitter rival, a jaded columnist, or a jealous teammate. It was a kid who once idolized the two-way superstar before getting nothing more than what she described as a dismissive side-eye when she asked for an autograph.
When a 12-year-old can cut through the marketing machine better than anyone in the media, you know the cracks are showing.
The Myth of Humble Shohei
For years, Major League Baseball has force-fed fans the idea that Ohtani is the ultimate ambassador for the sport: polite, respectful, humble. He doesn’t just hit moonshots and dominate on the mound—he supposedly represents baseball purity. But that script doesn’t survive much scrutiny.
Fox News and the New York Post highlighted Arcuri’s account of her encounter, which ended with her deciding she would “never like him ever since.” It’s the kind of small moment baseball’s PR machine would prefer to bury. But it matters, because it shatters the myth. If a Little Leaguer walks away from meeting Ohtani believing he’s arrogant, how many others have had similar run-ins that never made it into the spotlight?
And it comes on top of Ohtani’s other off-field baggage. His former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, went to prison for stealing nearly $17 million from Ohtani’s accounts to cover gambling debts. The scandal forced Ohtani into a shaky press conference where he denied ever placing a bet, leaving just as many questions as answers.
More recently, he and his agent, Nez Balelo, have been sued in Hawaii, accused of sabotaging a $240 million luxury housing development. Not precisely the optics of the humble star MLB keeps selling to the world.
The Beginning of the End for the Ohtani Image
Put it all together: the gambling scandal, the lawsuit, and now even kids at the Little League World Series calling him out. At some point, the shine is gone.
Sure, the Dodgers don’t regret their record $700 million deal—deferred or not—because it brought them an MVP and a World Series title. But the idea that Ohtani is untouchable, above criticism, and universally beloved? That’s finished.
And it didn’t take a veteran analyst to say it. It took a 12-year-old girl who spoke her mind. When the very kids MLB wants to inspire start seeing through the façade, the empire begins to crumble from the ground up.
Baseball has built Ohtani up as a flawless global icon, but the warning is clear: once kids stop buying the story, adults won’t be far behind.
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