Shohei Ohtani turned Drake’s social media trolling into World Series fuel, and it worked out pretty well for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Toronto-based rapper posted some unflattering photos of Ohtani during the Dodgers’ seven-game championship run against the Blue Jays. One showed the two-way superstar falling to one knee after swinging and missing against reliever Trey Yesavage. Another was just Ohtani posing in formal wear.
Drake claimed he was joking afterward, but the damage was done.
Miguel Rojas wasn’t having it. The Dodgers second baseman, who hit the game-tying homer in the top of the ninth in Game 7, told TMZ Sports that the team noticed Drake’s Instagram posts.
“That doesn’t go unnoticed. When you kind of disrespect—a little bit—the best player in the game. Not understanding the quality of the person and what the guy has done for baseball… You don’t have to do that, man.”
Here’s the thing about trying to get in Ohtani’s head: it tends to backfire.
The 30-year-old pitched 2.1 innings in Game 7, giving up three runs on five hits and two walks. All three runs came on a Bo Bichette home run, but Ohtani also struck out three from the mound. At the plate, he went 2-for-4 with a walk.
Not exactly the performance of someone rattled by social media noise.
What makes this whole situation funnier is that Drake probably should’ve known better. Going after baseball’s biggest star while representing Toronto? That’s asking for trouble, especially when you’re already dealing with the Kendrick Lamar situation.
The way I see it, Drake picked the wrong target. Ohtani’s built different—he’s handled way more pressure than some Instagram posts from a rapper. The Dodgers clearly used it as motivation, and now they’re champions.
Sometimes the best response to trash talk is just winning it all.
