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Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and his wife, Mamiko Tanaka, have announced the arrival of their first child. The baseball sensation shared the news in a heartfelt Instagram post on Saturday.
“I am so grateful to my loving wife who gave birth to our healthy beautiful daughter,” Ohtani wrote. “To my daughter, thank you for making us very nervous yet super anxious parents.”
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Ahead of the team’s series opener against the Texas Rangers on Friday night, the Dodgers placed Ohtani on MLB’s paternity list. Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts expressed hope that Ohtani would return in time for the series finale on Sunday.
This joyous update follows Ohtani’s December 2024 Instagram post where he announced the couple was expecting a baby—affectionately referring to the unborn child as a “little rookie”—alongside a photo of a pink onesie.
From Basketball Court to Private Life: Mamiko Tanaka’s Journey
Mamiko Tanaka, born on December 11, 1996, is a former professional basketball player from Japan. She played for Waseda University before going pro in 2019 with the Fujitsu Red Wave in the Women’s Japan Basketball League (WJBL).
Standing at 5-foot-11, Tanaka played as a forward and competed with Fujitsu Red Wave for four seasons until her retirement in 2023. That final season, she delivered a 47.7% field goal percentage and a 69.9% free throw percentage over 28 games, according to ESPN.
Ohtani, when asked about his wife during a post-marriage press conference, described her simply as a, “normal Japanese woman.”
Marriage Announcement by Shohei Ohtani Came Ahead of 2024 Season
Ohtani publicly announced his marriage in February 2024 through an Instagram post. The caption included a message in English, while a more personal note to his fans was shared in Japanese.
According to translations from CNN and the Associated Press, Ohtani used the moment to kindly request privacy for his family and friends.
“The season is approaching, I am pleased to announce to you that I have gotten married,” Ohtani said in Japanese.
“We are still young and [there are] many things we don’t know yet, but we hope you will warmly watch over us,” he continued. “We hope that the two of us (and one dog) will work together to support each other and move forward alongside with our fans.”
When pressed about the exact date of the wedding, Ohtani declined to give specifics, stating, “I don’t really feel comfortable talking about when I got married exactly,” as quoted by TIME. He added that it felt like “good timing” to share the news as the baseball season was about to begin.
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