Shohei Ohtani delivers heartfelt tribute to wife Mamiko Tanaka during 2024 NL MVP Award acceptance speech

Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani and his wife Mamiko Tanaka had an incredible year in 2024 which saw them achieve glory on many wavelengths. Last year, Ohtani announced marriage to Tanaka in February. Ohtani won his maiden World Series in October, was named the 2024 NL MVP unanimously in November, and the couple announced their pregnancy in December.

Shohei Ohtani received his NL MVP award on Saturday and in an endearing acceptance speech, he voiced his heartfelt gratitude towards many entities who played an integral part in his success last year, most importantly his better half, Mamiko Tanaka.

In his acceptance speech, Ohtani said:

"I would like to thank the BBWAA for this special NL MVP award. This year was a very special year in so many ways. And there are a lot of people to thank. I would like to start off by thanking the entire Los Angeles Dodgers organization, for the opportunity they gave me to play for this historical franchise.

"Thank you to all the owners, lead by Mark Walter. To the entire front office, especially Stan Kasten, Lon Rosen, Andrew Friedman, Brandon Gomes. To all my teammates, and the coaching staff, trainers, and all the behind-the-scenes staff for the helping and encouraging me throughout the year.

"And lastly to the fans. I felt your support every day. Also a special shoutout to Will Ireton. To my support group, starting with my agent, Nez Balelo. Thank you for all you do. CAA Sports, Matt, Julia, Carly. Thank you to my beautiful wife [Mamiko Tanaka]. Thank you for always being there for me. And to my family and friends for their support. "

Shohei Ohtani also dedicated the award to all the organizations, and firefighting units who are battling the raging wildfires in California since the first week of January.

Shohei Ohtani made his wife, Mamiko Tanaka's pregnancy announcement via a cute social media post

Shohei Ohtani ended 2024 with utter jubilation after learning about his wife, Mamiko Tanaka's pregnancy. He took to social media to make the announcement via a heartfelt post which involved his pet dog Decoy, a set of baby clothes and shoes.

"Can’t wait for the little rookie to join our family soon!"

Shotime finished a remarkable 2024 MLB season with a .310 batting average, 54 home runs, 130 RBIs, and 1.036 OPS, becoming the first MLB player to join the 50-50 club, earning him a third MVP title.