Reds' Elly De La Cruz Learning Japanese So He Can Talk with Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani

Cincinatti Reds infielder Elly De La Cruz says he is learning Japanese in order to chat with Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani at the 2024 MLB All-Star Game.

"I don't know if I'm gonna learn, but I'm trying," De La Cruz said.

If De La Cruz does pick up Japanese, it would not be the first time the 22-year-old native of the Dominican Republic has added a new language to his repertoire.

De La Cruz in March held a press conference in English for the first time after he said he put in "a lot of work" to practice to language.

"It's so important to me because now you guys understand what I say, and it's important to fans to understand me, and me understand the fans," De La Cruz said.

De La Cruz continued: "I practice every day, talking with the other guys."

The Reds do not currently have any Japanese players on their roster.

But with the contingent of MLB players born in Japan growing— four, including the Los Angeles Dodgers' Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Chicago Cubs' Shota Imanaga, made their North American debuts this season— there's a chance De La Cruz will get the chance to practice his third language with a teammate in the future.

For now, De La Cruz has just over a week to brush up on his Japanese before he and Ohtani come together to represent the National League as the All-Star Game takes place on Tuesday, July 16 in Arlington, Texas.