Every baseball legend must have a beginning, and for multi-talented Los Angeles Angels phenom Shohei Ohtani, that debut came against the Oakland Athletics on March 29, 2018 at Oakland Coliseum in Oakland on Opening Day of the 2018 MLB season. Ohtani spent the first five years of his baseball career playing with the Hokkaido Nippon Ham-Fighters of the Nippon Professional Baseball League from 2013 to 2017, where the combination pitcher/designated hitter/outfielder won the Japanese Series in 2016, the Pacific League MVP Award in 2016, and was named to five NPB All-Star teams. Ohtani made the leap across the Pacific Ocean on December 8, 2017, when he signed with the Los Angeles Angels.

Ohtani made his MLB debut as the designated hitter, batting eighth in the lineup. Ohtani had a promising start to his career and hit a single off Kendall Graveman during the top of the second inning during his first at-bat. Ohtani would ultimately bat 1-for-5 during the Athletics' 6-5 victory over the Angels. Ohtani would finish his MLB rookie season with an average of .285 with 22 home runs and 61 RBI to earn the AL Rookie of the Year Award.

Offered here is a game used Official Major League Robert D. Manfred baseball from Ohtani's MLB debut signed by the triple threat Los Angeles Angel. The Rawlings baseball comes from a Justin Upton foul ball hit off Kendall Graveman during the top of the third inning. Ohtani signed his name with a blue ballpoint pen on the east panel of the baseball below a "2018 OPENING DAY" logo. The signature is clear. The baseball displays excellent evidence of game use and contains dirt stains across the entirety of the ball, abrasions, and hit marks. The item comes with an MLB Authenticated hologram (JC366460) for the game use and a COA from PSA/DNA (AF26198) for the signature.

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