OFF THE WALL
We just couldn’t let this stuff go …
Ohtani ‘enjoying’ driving experience
Shohei Ohtani doesn’t just drive the ball anymore.
The Los Angeles Angels’ twoway star says he got his California driver’s license in the offseason, putting the 25-year-old behind the wheel of a car for the first time, writes Greg Beacham of The Associated Press.
“I’m enjoying it,” Ohtani said through his interpreter last weekend after rolling up to the Angels’ spring training complex in Tempe, Ariz., in his Tesla. “I was able to pass it the first time, so not too much stress.”
Ohtani never got a license in his native Japan because the process is longer and more expensive, and he didn’t need to drive himself anywhere in Sapporo thanks to public transportation and his team.
Since he joined the Angels in 2018 and moved to car-centric Southern California, he had been driven around by other people.
Ohtani says he thinks he’s a “pretty good” driver already, although he still hasn’t driven onto the Los Angeles area’s famous freeways by himself.
With his recovery from Tommy John surgery in its final stages, Ohtani has plenty of other work to do this spring as he prepares to return to the Angels’ rotation in mid-may.
Ohtani will be able to hit for the Halos from the opening game of spring, but manager Joe Maddon has said the team is ramping up his pitching work gradually in a bid to keep him fresh for the long season ahead.
Ohtani made 10 starts for the Angels during his AL Rookie of the Year season in 2018. Although he clearly demonstrated the tantalizing talent that made every team in baseball eager to land his services, Ohtani says he is taking nothing for granted as he prepares for his mound return.
Trivia question
Who won the first Daytona 500 on this date in 1959?
Tweaking Phanatic
The Phillie Phanatic is about to get a new look.
The Philadelphia Phillies announced that the Phanatic is getting a makeover, which fans will get to see for the first time on Monday when the Phillies play the Pittsburgh Pirates in a spring training game at Spectrum Field in Florida, writes Julie Hatmaker of The Patriotnews, Harrisburg, Pa.
The Phanatic will still be green and furry, however the shoes and socks may be different, according to NBC Philadelphia.
The news station also teased that the Phanatic’s measurements might be different too. However the Phanatic will still be shooting hot dogs and go around the stadium on his four wheeler.
The Phillies are currently in a legal battle with the original Phanatic designers, Bonnie Erickson and Wayde Harrison.
While the Phillies bought the rights to the Phanatic in 1984, artists are allowed to renegotiate rights to their work after 35 years, according to federal law.
NBC Philadelphia reports that the Phillies are hoping that by changing the Phanatic up a bit the courts will allow them to legally continue using the Phanatic.
Pele sits it out
Soccer great did not attend a ceremony Thursday to unveil a statue of him representing Brazil’s historic 1970 World Cup winning team.
The Brazilian has suffered with mobility problems for years, which has forced him to use walkers and wheelchairs in public. Nine players of that Brazil squad of almost 50 years ago were present at the headquarters of the country’s soccer confederation in Rio de Janeiro, but the 79-year-old Pele took part only on video.
His spokesman, Pepito Fornos, said it was already agreed that Pele would not show up for the unveiling of his statue, which was made by a London-based company and is life sized.
“When it comes to beauty, the statue is much more beautiful,” Pele jokingly said in a video previously filmed at his house in Guaruja, outside Sao Paulo. “I thank God for having the health during this tribute, this moment.”
One of Pele’s sons told Brazilian media last week that his father was somewhat depressed for not being able to move freely since hip surgery in 2012.
Edson Cholbi do Nascimento, known as Edinho, also told Globo Esporte that Pele “does not feel like leaving home” and “feels embarrassed, shy” because of his physical difficulties.
Trivia answer
Lee Petty, driving an Oldsmobile, defeated Johnny Beauchamp in a photo finish to take the first Daytona 500.