Angels' Hunter Dozier Has Hilarious Response to Wearing Shohei Ohtani's Jersey Number

There's a new number 17 in town.

The Los Angeles Angels might have lost their superstar, Shohei Ohtani, but they now have a new number 17 in town. His name is Hunter Dozier. 

Dozier is the first player to wear number 17 for the Angels after Ohtani left in free agency. 

It looks pretty odd to see an Angels player wearing 17 that is not Ohtani, but Dozier is having fun with it. The Athletic's Sam Blum told Dozier about his jersey number, and he had a hilarious response to it. 

I asked Hunter Dozier last week about wearing No. 17 for the Angels immediately after Shohei Ohtani.

Told him all the fans would already have his jersey.

“There’s going to be a lot of 17s (at Angel Stadium)," he joked. "Just don’t look at the last name. Look at the number.”

— Sam Blum (@SamBlum3) February 27, 2024

For those Angel fans with the number 17 Shohei Ohtani Angels jersey, there is no need to throw it away. Dozier is in town. 

The former long-time Kansas City Royals signed with the Halos in mid-January. He signed a minor-league deal with a non-roster invitee this spring. 

Dozier is already proving he belongs in the big league roster. In six ABs, he has a .500 average, .571 OPS, 1.738 OPS, two runs, three hits, one home run and three RBIs. Ohtani is only hitting .333 after his first spring training game.

Although these stats might not be sustainable, Dozier is playing superbly. If those numbers translate to the regular season, he'll already be the greatest number 17 in Halos history. 

In all seriousness, Dozier is a proven veteran who could provide some depth to the Halos infield if he makes the team. The back of his jersey has a major league-ready number already.