Shohei Ohtani is giving back to his home country, Japan. The baseball superstar is donating 60,000 baseball gloves back to elementary schools in Japan.

The MLB announced Ohtani's donation on X.

“I’m happy to announce that I will be donating approximately 60,000 youth gloves to every elementary school in Japan,” Ohtani said. “That comes out to around 20,000 elementary schools. I’m hoping the kids can spend their days happily with a lot of energy through baseball.”

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Ohtani initially started playing professional baseball in Japan on the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters because they gave him the opportunity to play both ways. In the NPB, he was a 5x All-Star and won the Pacific League MVP in 2016. Now, his gift will allow other kids to follow in his footsteps and play baseball. 

Outside of donating tons of gloves, Ohtani is busy picking his next team. The star pitcher and hitter is the most sought-after free agent across the MLB right now, even after tearing his UCL and undergoing surgery late in the 2023 season.

After five years with the Los Angeles Angels, Shohei Ohtani is seeking to play for a contender and will more than likely be rewarded with the top contract in baseball. The Los Angeles Dodgers are the favorite to land the 3x MLB All-Star and 2021 AL MVP. It would make sense for Ohtani to join the Dodgers given he initially wanted to play for them out of high school before he joined the NPB. He would also be able to stay in Los Angeles, and refrain from moving far. The Texas Rangers, San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox are also contenders to sign Ohtani.