Run-in with longtime fan isn't helping Dodgers' image

Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Run-in with fan over Shohei Ohtani home run ball isn't helping Dodgers' image

By Mike Santa Barbara | Last updated 4/4/24

Thoughts vary regarding how the Los Angeles Dodgers have handled the illegal gambling scandal implicating former longtime friend and interpreter of star Shohei Ohtani, Ippei Mizuhara.

However, while that saga hangs over the franchise's head, the latest incident involving the team isn't bound to boost public opinion.

On Wednesday, Ohtani smashed his first home run as a Dodger to the delight of many, except the fan who caught the ball, Ambar Roman. On Thursday, she told Sam Blum of The Athletic that team security pressured her unnecessarily when attempting to claim the historic ball.

Roman alleges that security coerced her into answering immediately, threatening to block the ball's authentication if she didn't give it up. Finally, she relented, exchanging it for two autographed hats and bats.

Shohei Ohtani crushes his first home run as a Dodger! pic.twitter.com/Riq4vqqeDr
— MLB (@MLB) April 4, 2024

Alexis Valenzuela, Roman's husband, said security separated the couple while they discussed an exchange for the ball, estimated to be worth $100,000 at auction.

"They really took advantage of her," he told The Athletic. "There were a bunch of (security) guys around her. They wouldn't let me talk to her or give her any advice. There was no way for us to leave. They had her pretty much cornered in the back."

Neither fan seems ready to hold a grudge against their beloved Dodgers, but it's hard to shake how the franchise they revere treated them. The team is reportedly willing to have further discussions with the couple, and they probably should.

It wouldn't be surprising to see the Dodgers make things right in the coming days, even if they had countless opportunities to do so the first time around. Still, it's a bad look for the Dodgers, who already have a big enough black cloud hanging over them.

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