When Jeff Passan defended Shohei Ohtani's use of a translator, shut down Stephen A. Smith's unwarranted criticism

Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani is well-liked by fans. He excels as an outfielder, pitcher, and hitter and has quickly established himself as one of the finest players in the MLB.

However, one area where Ohtani has struggled is in speaking English. In 2021, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith attacked Ohtani for using a translator. Smith claimed that because Ohtani couldn't speak English, he was unable to communicate with many individuals, which damaged the reputation of the sport.

Jeff Passan fired back at Smith, saying that people needed to be more open-minded and embrace Ohtani irrespective of the language he spoke.

“Look at what he’s doing. That’s what we should be asking ourselves. It’s not that Shohei Ohtani doesn’t speak English publicly and that people don’t embrace him. It’s that if people don’t embrace him publicly because he doesn’t speak English, they’re the problem — not Shohei Ohtani.”

Smith later apologized to Ohtani, the “Asian community, the Asian American community, to Walt Disney and ESPN” for his comments. In a statement on social media, Smith said he was "sincerely sorry."

Shohei Ohtani has quickly developed into one of the finest players in the game

World Baseball Classic Semifinals: Mexico v Japan

In 2018, Ohtani made his MLB debut for the Los Angeles Angels after arriving from Japan. Ohtani pitched six innings in 2018, striking out six batters while giving up three runs.

After battling injuries in 2019 and 2020, Ohtani had a historic 2021 season. He became the first player in MLB history with at least 10 home runs, 20 stolen bases as a hitter and 100 strikeouts, as well as 10 pitching appearances in the same season. He was named the 2021 AL MVP.

He continued his fine run of form in 2022, becoming the first player in the modern era to qualify for both hitting and pitching leaderboards in the same season.