Shohei Ohtani has a game today, so he won’t be able to spend time with his mom on Mother’s Day. So instead, he posted a touching tribute to his maternal figure, believing that she would insist on him playing his game and would be concerned if he skipped out to visit her—even on this special holiday.

Ohtani’s heartfelt message was translated as:

“I am playing baseball today, as usual. Even if I catch a plane to see my mom with flowers, she would not be pleased. I think she would be worried that I don’t have to play today. Hoping that my home run will make my mom across the sea smile as she did back then.”

The Los Angeles Dodgers star hopes to hit a home run for his mom today. He has been in excellent form this year, so there’s a good chance of that happening. If he does, his mother, whose name is Kayoko, will smile all the way over in Japan.

The LA area was one that Ohtani picked because of its similarity in time zone to Japan. The West Coast has the closest time schedule to his home country, and he has played his entire career (first with the Los Angeles Angels) there.

But even with that in mind, it’s still far away. It’s more than an 11-hour flight to get back to Japan from Los Angeles, so Ohtani can’t see his mom. He knows this, and he’s aiming to make her proud today in the game against the San Diego Padres.

Can Shohei Ohtani hit a home run for his mom?

It’s a lofty goal to say any player is going to hit a home run today. Nevertheless, Shohei Ohtani is one player for whom it is often safe to predict such an outcome.

This season, Ohtani has 11 home runs in 159 at-bats. That means every 14 at-bats, he hits one.

Shohei Ohtani wants to hit a home run for his mom

Ohtani hasn’t hit a home run since May 6 against the Miami Marlins, and he’s taken exactly 14 at-bats since then. That means, based on his pace this season, he’s in line to hit one pretty soon.