After years of redefining what¡¯s possible in baseball, Shohei Ohtani is setting a new standard off the field for Japanese dads.
Despite recent efforts by the government, it¡¯s still uncommon for fathers in Japan to take child care leave ¡ª men are entitled to up to 52 weeks of paid paternity leave, but only 30.1% of male employees took any in fiscal 2023 ¡ª and it¡¯s the same in the world of pro sports.
Recently, the Japanese media and the internet went wild with excitement when the Los Angeles Dodgers star went on MLB¡¯s paternity list for the birth of his daughter, even giving him a new nickname, ¡°Papa-tani.¡± Dodgers manager Dave Roberts joked about Ohtani¡¯s ¡°dad strength,¡± a term that¡¯s been making the rounds on social media.
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