We love seeing anime crossovers in other industries. And here’s one we absolutely did not expect. Today during the game between the LA Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants, baseball icon Shohei Ohtani walked out to “il vento d’oro” by Yugo Kanno, which is one of the most iconic songs from the anime Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0TXIXTzJEY

An Epic Baseball x Anime Crossover

For this specific match, Ohtani was chosen as the lead-off hitter and designated hitter in the starting line up. With the rivalry between the the two teams being one of the fiercest and longest standing in American baseball, tensions were understandably high. However, in this particular match, the ante was upped even further as wives of the baseball players were allowed to choose the entrance songs for their respective partners. Ohtani’s wife, Mamiko Tanaka was the one who ended up choosing the much loved “il vento d’oro” track. 

The anime Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure is known for its quirky, crazy plot points as well as its overpowered and muscular main characters. While the lyrics to “il vento d’oro” don’t make a lot of sense (Feel the hip hop, if you can rock, go crazy, one by one),  the vibe it gives off that instantly makes you feel like an overwhelmingly strong shonen anime character.

We’re unsure if the American crowd truly got the reference, but the Dodgers ended up winning the game. While it wasn’t purely thanks to Ohtani, we’re pretty confident that the Jojo theme brought them some bizarre luck. 

Shohei Ohtani’s Relationship with His Wife

The song choice was a cute tongue-in-cheek suggestion from Ohtani’s wife. The fact that it also brought it back to their roots in Japan was a nice reference to their home and perhaps a subtle nod that they might both be huge anime fans. During a recent interview, Ohtani was asked who his favorite athlete was. He responded with the words, “my wife” without hesitation.

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