Amber Roman, the fan who caught Shohei Ohtani’s first home run ball with the Los Angeles Dodgers, returned to Dodger Stadium on Friday for a meet and greet and de facto birthday celebration.
Roman posted pictures of herself, husband Alexis Valenzuela and more with Ohtani outside the Dodgers clubhouse. Roman was holding an autographed bat and baseball. It previously was reported she agreed to give Ohtani his home run ball in exchange for two autographed hats, one autographed bat and an autographed ball.
Roman initially expressed happiness with the exchange on Twitter after the game, but the situation later became a source of controversy amid public opinion she was shorted in the exchange and claims Dodger Stadium security were aggressive in their tactics while attempting to negotiate.
Furthermore, in most cases, fans who catch milestone home run balls usually get the opportunity to meet the player after the game. Roman did not speak with Ohtani despite that being suggested.
BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!! 🫶🏽🫶🏽🥲🥲 pic.twitter.com/F3yyvmrqFb
— 𝓢𝓾𝓰𝓪𝓻𝓣𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓼 🪩 (@ambeerrrr24) April 13, 2024
“I was able to talk to the fan and get the ball back. Obviously, it’s a very special ball. A lot of feelings toward it. I’m very grateful it’s back,” Ohtani said through interpretor Will Ireton.
Ohtani’s answer in Japanese did not explicitly state he met with the fan who caught the home run ball, but those fluent in the language came away with that impression as well.
Friday’s meeting came about after the Dodgers invited Roman and her husband back to the stadium and indicated they would review the process of retrieving milestone home run balls.
Ohtani’s home run ball has been estimated by some to be worth $100,000.
Shohei Ohtani home run
In his first at-bat of the series opener against the San Diego Padres, Ohtani went to the opposite field for a fourth home run of the season that also extended his hitting streak to eight games.
Ohtani tied Hideki Matsui for most home runs in MLB history by a Japanese-born player with 175.
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