A night after Shohei Ohtani was saved from serious injury by a Dodgers bat boy making an incredible catch, the bat boy received his praise. Javier Herrera has been an employee of the Dodgers for 18 seasons, but no game has been bigger than Thursday night.
Herrera made news after catching a line drive headed straight toward the $700 million Dodger. On Friday, Herrera spoke with reporters about this moment, saying, “I was just doing my job. … I saw the pitch all the way through; it hit the bat, and the ball pretty much found me. But I was able to grab it.”
Herrera received worthy recognition from Ohtani via his Instagram story. Ohtani posted a video of Herrera talking with reporters on Instagram with the caption, “My hero.” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts also commented on the situation: “I was obviously right next to him, but I didn’t appreciate how close it was, you know, going towards Shohei. And what a great play it was.” Roberts also joked about a possible raise for Herrera.
This is not the first Herrera has been in the spotlight for his efforts with the Dodgers. In 2016, he took a tumble over a wall attempting to catch a foul ball, which got the attention of the late Vin Scully.
The Dodgers are undoubtedly pleased Herrera was able to make his most recent play, saving the Japanese star from a potentially serious injury. Ohtani recently set a career-high with ten straight games with an RBI and has been on fire to start the season.
Photo Credit: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers looks on from the dugout. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
