Mets scoreboard joked about sending Shohei Ohtani the bill after his foul ball damaged screen

Despite suffering a torn UCL — which ended his season as a pitcher — Shohei Ohtani joined his Angels teammates on the flight to New York and was active as a designated hitter for the series against the Mets.

It didn’t take long for the Angels star to leave a mark at Citi Field … literally.

Batting in the first inning of Saturday’s game, Ohtani turned on a breaking ball and narrowly missed a home run as the ball drifted foul. But keep an eye on the ribbon board just beyond the foul pole. Ohtani managed to blow out the lights on a panel.

Shohei Ohtani knocked out a bulb in the scoreboard on a long foul ball.

Ohtani later doubled to right-center. pic.twitter.com/0kQmIDA4gD

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 26, 2023

Now, the Mets are having a miserable season, but many expect owner Steve Cohen to make a run at Ohtani this offseason (even if the UCL injury impacts Ohtani’s pitching future). That didn’t stop the scoreboard operator from having a sense of humor about the damage done to Citi Field’s ribbon board.

During that same at-bat, a message on the videoboard claimed that Ohtani was going to receive a bill from the Mets.

Shohei Ohtani broke some lights at Citi Field with a line drive and Uncle Steve is gonna make sure to get his money

(via @jmb9191) pic.twitter.com/yfyXlN8aGZ

— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) August 27, 2023

I’d love to think that an invoice was waiting for Ohtani in his locker, but something tells me that Cohen can cover the damage himself.

Fans did enjoy the scoreboard operator’s joke, though.