Noted Shohei Ohtani superfan Ben Verlander apparently isn’t aware of Jackie Robinson.
Verlander, the brother of former Met and current Astros ace Justin Verlander, is a notorious Ohtani homer and called Ohtani the “most important signing in Dodgers history.”
And social media users roasted the Fox Sports analyst for his preposterous take.
“This means everything,” Verlander said Tuesday. “It’s the most important signing in Dodgers history, I have no problem saying that. It’s the most important, it’s the biggest and I think it will be the most impactful and it’s already impactful. Not on the field, but odds-wise the Dodgers are now the odds-on favorite to win the World Series.”
Now, perhaps Verlander simply had a brain fart — albeit a major one.
He went on to mention how Ohtani will now forever be linked to the Dodgers brand and go into the Hall of Fame with their logo on his cap.
But to forget about a Hall of Famer who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball in 1947, a defining day for the sport, is quite the mistake.
It’s not as if there’s a Jackie Robinson Day each year and his No. 42 is honored each year.
And, as the youngins would say, Verlander was ratioed for his awful opinion, with most referencing the stunning exclusion of Robinson.
As of Wednesday morning, the clip shared by @MLBONFOX had 1.7 million reposts or quote tweets and roughly 800 likes.
A ratio of nearly 2000/1 is not ideal.
Former Dodgers third baseman and current free agent Justin Turner — whom the Mets have engaged with this winter — quote tweeted the clip to provide some history about his former franchise.
“There is no #17 without #42. Come on man 🤯 #SMH #JackieRobinson #ComeOnMan #TerribleTake,” Turner posted on X.
As of Wednesday morning, Verlander has only shared the clip but has not offered any additional comment.
Verlander is known for arguably being Ohtani’s No. 1 fan, and conducted an interview with him for Fox’s “Searching for Shohei: An Interview Special” last year.