Mike Tyson Goes Viral for Bizarre Question Regarding Shohei Ohtani at 2026 ESPYs

Shohei Ohtani won the ESPYs Best Single-Game Performance Award for his incredible 2-way showing against the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 4 of the NLCS last year.

Mike Tyson Goes Viral for Bizarre Question Regarding Shohei Ohtani at 2026 ESPYs

Mike Tyson was caught in a hot mic moment with Jake Paul regarding Shohei Ohtani (Image via MMA Mania/X/@JomboyMedia/Imago)

Boxing great Mike Tyson is probably not a baseball guy. On Wednesday, the 60-year-old went viral on social media after he asked a bizarre question regarding Shohei Ohtani at the 2026 ESPYs.

Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers star, took home another award on Wednesday. His performance in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series (NLCS) against the Milwaukee Brewers last season saw him win the ESPYs for the Best Single-Game Performance.

At the David H. Koch Theater in New York City, Tyson was joined on stage by Jake Paul and music artist DJ Khaled. After Tyson announced Ohtani as the winner, Paul told the audience that the baseball star was unable to attend the event.

Shohei could not be here tonight. He sends his gratitude and appreciation to ESPN and everyone who voted for him.

Jake Paul said

It was after this that Tyson asked a bizarre question. He turned around to Paul and was caught on the hot mic asking whether Ohtani was a guy.

Shohei’s a guy?

Mike Tyson said

Ohtani is one of the most popular stars in MLB at the moment. The Japanese international is the most-followed MLB star on Instagram with 10.8 million followers. Tyson, however, does not appear to be a huge baseball fanatic.

Speaking of the award, Ohtani earned another honor for his performance against the Brewers in Game 4 of the NLCS last year. With the Dodgers 3-0 up in the series, Ohtani was the starting pitcher and designated hitter (DH) in this game.

The two-way star excelled in both departments. He went 3-for-3 from the plate and hit 3 home runs. From the mound, he threw 6 scoreless innings and picked up 10 strikeouts.

The Dodgers won 5-1 and swept the Brewers 4-0 in the NLCS. Ohtani was later named the MVP of this championship series. He also won the MLB’s Legendary Moment of the Year Award for this performance.

Now, Ohtani has won an ESPY award for his performance. His showing against the Brewers edged out Bam Adebayo‘s 83-point game against the Washington Wizards, Hannah Hidalgo‘s 16 steals in an NCAA game, and Tyce Armstrong‘s 3 grand slams in a game to win this honor.

Apart from this, Ohtani was also named the Best MLB Player at the ESPYs ahead of New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge, Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, and Pittsburgh Pirates ace pitcher Paul Skenes.

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Shohei Ohtani missed the All-Star Game this year

This week, the MLB hosted its 96th All-Star Game. Stars from the American League and the National League faced off at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. While some of the big names took the field this past Tuesday, Shohei Ohtani was one notable absentee.

Shohei Ohtani
Shohei Ohtani (Image via Imago)

Ohtani was the first player to be named as an All-Star this year. Due to his immense popularity, he earned over 3 million votes in the first phase of fan voting.

It seemed that he would be starting as the DH in the game. However, after suffering some issues with his knee last week, the 32-year-old was pulled from his start against the Arizona Diamondbacks. It was later announced that he would serve just as the DH in the series against the D-backs and would not travel to Philadelphia for the All-Star Game.

This injury, though, is not going to sideline him for a long time. As per manager Dave Roberts, Ohtani was scheduled to get his knee drained on Sunday. Had this issue surfaced during a playoff run in October, Ohtani would have pitched.

The Dodgers and their superstar will start off the 2nd half of the season with a series against the Yankees in New York. This will be their first time facing the Bronx Bombers in their stadium since the 2024 World Series, which the Dodgers won 4-1.

They will go into this game on a 3-game losing run. The LA-based side were swept for the first time this season in their previous series by the D-backs. Despite the 3-game sweep, the NL West division leaders hold the best record in the league at 61-36.

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