Trump Praises Shohei Ohtani While Meeting U.S. College Baseball Champions: "There's a Pretty Good Japanese Player"

President Donald Trump, during his meeting with the college baseball champions at the White House today, referred to Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had just showcased an amazing performance in the National League Championship Series. He joked, "I saw a Japanese player a few days ago who did pretty well," without mentioning his name, but everyone there understood who he was talking about.

The Pilots from LSU Shreveport completed an unprecedented 59-0 undefeated season this year and visited the White House today, where they were honored by President Trump.

Trump’s speech was full of humor, especially when mentioning coaches Jay Johnson and Brad Neffendorf, saying, "I think they should be brought into government work; they’d definitely be useful there."

Trump also remarked, "I’m usually too busy to watch much baseball, but I caught a game a few days ago, and there happened to be a Japanese player who performed quite well." Although he did not mention the name, everyone in attendance clearly understood. This understated praise of Ohtani’s epic performance amused the players present.

Trump went on to say, "He delivered one of the most amazing pitching performances I’ve ever seen, and also one of the best hitting performances, so he got a pretty decent contract." Turning to the players, he asked, "He’s really great, isn’t he?" The players unanimously responded, "Yeah..."