Shohei Ohtani’s impact on the Dodgers’ back-to-back World Series titles is not lost on anyone. Back on October 17, in Game 4 of the NLCS, he further strengthened his case as one of the greatest baseball players by becoming the only player in MLB history to hit multiple home runs in a game he also pitched. Naturally, that masterclass earned him another accolade this year. But after Mike Tyson announced his name, an off-script moment quickly shifted the attention away from the Dodgers star’s achievement.

Tyson, along with influencer Jake Paul and music producer DJ Khaled, gathered on the stage at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center in New York on Wednesday. They were there to hand over the Best Single-Game Performance Award to Shohei Ohtani. However, the Dodgers’ DH has been recovering from his knee inflammation and could not be present to accept the honor. While the crowd was cheering after Tyson announced Ohtani’s name, Paul informed them of his absence. 

“Shohei could not be here tonight. He sends his gratitude and appreciation to ESPN and everyone who voted for him,” Paul said, per Jomboy Media on X, and before he could even finish his sentence, Tyson turned towards Paul and asked, “Shohei’s a guy?”

He was oblivious to the images of Ohtani running on the giant screen right behind him. He didn’t mean to ask the audience, but the microphone at the ESPYs, which is an annual American awards show produced by ESPN since 1993, caught it anyway, and it quickly went viral.

Notably, Shohei Ohtani had an incredible performance last year in Game 4 of the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers. The two-way superstar delivered six scoreless innings, allowing just 2 hits and striking out 10 batters. Meanwhile, as a batter, he went 3-for-3, and each of those hits resulted in home runs, including a massive 469-foot homer. This earned him the Best Single-Game Performance Award.

However, for Ohtani, winning the award came with stiff competition. He had to beat Bam Adebayo (83 points in a single NBA game), Hannah Hidalgo (NCAA basketball record of 16 steals in a game), and Tyce Armstrong (three grand slams in a single NCAA baseball game).

Ohtani’s antics from the Brewers game in the last postseason earned him the maximum number of votes. Notably, this is the second occasion this year that he has skipped after getting the highest votes. 

Shohei Ohtani earned his sixth All-Star selection this year, but he has been having some issues with his knee for the last few weeks. That’s why he chose to skip the Midsummer Classic and use the All-Star break to recover and be ready for the second half. 

Now, looking at the list of awards, the Dodgers star won the Best Male Athlete award in 2022 and the Best MLB Player Award for the fourth time within the last five years in 2025.

The ESPY Award added another feather to Ohtani’s crown, but Mike Tyson’s hot mic moment generated way more conversations than anyone had anticipated.