Ohtani gives Porsche to Kelly’s wife for uniform number No. 17
After the wife of reliever Joe Kelly offered her husband’s uniform number to help lure Shohei Ohtani to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the two-way star responded by giving her a Porsche.
The Dodgers shared a video showing Kelly’s wife, Ashley, who had launched what she dubbed her #Ohtake17 campaign in hopes that the free agent from Japan would sign with the team. She showed him all the No. 17 garb her family had that could be repurposed for Ohtani and his family and offered to rename the couple’s baby, Kai, to ShoKai.
In the video posted this weekend, she opens the front door to reveal a silver sports car parked in front of the house.
“It’s yours, from Shohei,” a man off camera says in the video to the stunned woman. “He wanted to gift you a Porsche.”
Ohtani received a record $700 million, 10-year contract this month to make a 30-mile move up Interstate 5 to the Dodgers. He had worn No. 17 with the Los Angeles Angels.
Kelly, who wore No. 17 with the Dodgers from 2019-21 and again last season, is switching to No. 99 after finalizing his own $8 million, one-year contract.
“I wasn’t going to give it up to just anybody,” Kelly said after Ohtani was announced as his new teammate. “If Shohei keeps performing, he’ll be a future Hall of Famer and I’ll be able to have my number retired. That’s the closest I’ll get to the Hall of Fame.”
Asked what Ohtani was giving him in return, Kelly said, “Oh, there’s a list, but no comment.”
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Position switches in college football often occur when a player isn’t producing.
That wasn’t the case with Mike Sainristil at Michigan.
In his third season at wide receiver in 2021, he was a key target and his highlight-worthy catches seemed to set him up for a bright future on offense with the Wolverines.
Jim Harbaugh had another idea entering spring ball last year, suggesting Sainristil switch to defensive back.
“He saw something that maybe I didn’t see in myself at the time,” Sainristil recalled recently in an interview. “My mindset was prove him right, prove myself right and take advantage of the opportunity.”
He has done just that, becoming a key contributor in the secondary last season and arguably the best player on a highly ranked defense this year.
The AP All-Big Ten cornerback is about to face a tough test in his third straight College Football Playoff appearance.
Michigan, whose season included a sign-stealing scandal that led to the Big Ten Conference suspending Harbaugh for three games, plays Alabama on New Year’s Day at the Rose Bowl to compete for a shot at the national championship.
“With everything that has been said this year about this program, about this team, about the success we’ve had,” Sainristil said, “what better opportunity to have against a team like Alabama to go be able to prove who we are.”
Jalen Milroe has led a resurgent passing game for the Crimson Tide since getting benched in Week 2 against South Florida.
The dynamic quarterback has seven touchdown passes without an interception over the past three games and had some clutch passes against Georgia in the SEC championship game and a remarkable completion on fourth-andgoal from the 31 for a touchdown to Isaiah Bonds to beat Auburn.
Former Georgia receiver Jermaine
Larry Lage
Burton is Alabama’s big-play threat, averaging 22.2 yards on 35 catches with eight touchdowns. Bond has 44 catches for 621 yards and four scores. The Wolverines allowed a FBS-low 9.5 points, led college football with five defensive touchdowns and gave up 152.6 yards passing a game to rank second. Sainristil had a lot to do with that. He made five interceptions, two more than any teammate, and returned two picks for scores. He also had 30 tackles, including three for losses and a sack.
“He checks all the boxes,” Michigan defensive back Josh Wallace said. “He plays outside, inside. He can cover anybody. He’s just a great physical guy and is not scared of contact.”
The 5-foot-10, 182-pound Sainristil makes up for his lack of size with plenty of fight and his off-the-field intangibles also are assets when teams evaluate prospects for the NFL draft. Sainristil is often smiling, thankful for a life that would’ve been much different if his family hadn’t fled Haiti and raised him in the Boston area.
On the field with his coverage and run-support skills, he reminds some of a smaller version of Detroit Lions defensive back and former Alabama star Brian Branch.