LOS ANGELES — A pair of shoes worn by Shohei Ohtani during his historic return to Japan with the Los Angeles Dodgers has already attracted a six-figure bid with just over a week remaining in the auction.
The game-used and signed New Balance Ohtani 1 shoes Ohtani wore during the opening game of the 2025 MLB Tokyo Series have reached a leading bid of $107,555, according to The Realest, which is conducting the auction. Bidding is scheduled to close Sunday, Aug. 16.
The one-of-one shoes were worn when Ohtani played his first MLB game in his home country as the Dodgers opened the 2025 season against the Chicago Cubs at the Tokyo Dome.
The Player Exclusive shoes were designed specifically for Ohtani and feature imagery of his dog Deko-pin, better known to American fans as Decoy. They are personally signed by Ohtani using his rare Japanese Kanji signature and include a “GU” inscription signifying they were game-used.
They even retain infield dirt from the Tokyo Dome.
The Realest showcased the shoes Thursday night during a private viewing at Yamashiro Hollywood, displaying the piece in a setting designed to pay tribute to Ohtani's celebrated return to Japan for the Tokyo Series.
“This is one of the most important pieces of modern baseball footwear ever publicly offered,” Scott Keeney, also known as DJ Skee, founder and CEO of The Realest, said when the auction was announced. “This is more than just a piece of game-used memorabilia from a star player — these shoes represent a rare crossover of baseball legacy, Japanese sports history, and sneaker culture.”
Ohtani's return to Japan was one of the biggest events on the 2025 baseball calendar. The Dodgers and Cubs opened the season with two games at the Tokyo Dome, putting Ohtani at the center of an enormous homecoming celebration as he played a major league game in Japan for the first time.
The shoes were worn in the first game of that series, adding to their significance for collectors. The Realest described the contest as the most-watched baseball game in Japanese history.
“The rarest artifacts are defined by the icon, the moment, and the provenance, with elite examples reaching million-dollar and multi-million-dollar prices,” Keeney said. “This pair of shoes has all three, placing it in the conversation with the most significant sports and cultural footwear of all-time.”
Ohtani memorabilia has already reached extraordinary prices at auction.
The baseball Ohtani hit for his historic 50th home run of the 2024 season, when he became the first player in MLB history to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in the same season, sold for $4.39 million. A one-of-one 2025 Topps Chrome Gold Logoman autograph card sold for $3 million, while an Ohtani World Baseball Classic jersey sold for $1.5 million earlier this year.
The market for historically significant footwear has also produced several seven- and eight-figure sales. Michael Jordan's six-shoe “Dynasty Collection” sold for $8.03 million in 2024, while his famous 1997 NBA Finals “Flu Game” Air Jordans sold for $1.38 million in 2023. Kobe Bryant's sneakers from the game in which he tore his Achilles tendon sold for $660,000 that same year.
The Ohtani shoes are also the first piece of memorabilia introduced through The Realest's “Certified” pilot program, which uses the company's authentication and provenance standards for collectibles.
For fans who aren't prepared to place a six-figure bid, The Realest is also conducting a free prediction contest tied to the auction. Participants can guess the final sale price, with the winner receiving an amount equal to 1% of the winning bid.
With bidding already at $107,555 and more than a week remaining, the final price will determine where a unique piece from one of the most memorable moments of Ohtani's career lands in the growing market for his memorabilia.