Blue Jays' Kazuma Okamoto breaks Shohei Ohtani's MLB record

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Kazuma Okamoto can now claim an MLB record that previously belonged to Shohei Ohtani.

Okamoto achieved his special moment by blasting a home run on Friday night for the Toronto Blue Jays against the Boston Red Sox.

The homer was his 23rd, which is now the new record for home runs hit by a Japanese-born player in a rookie season in MLB.

“That’s pretty cool that he sets the Japanese rookie record for homers in a season," Blue Jays manager John Schneider said after the game, via MLB.com. "That’s a great accomplishment for him, and I told him that. He’s so talented.”

This is what Okamoto said before the All-Star Break about the possibility of breaking the record:

“It’s just a number. As you all know, Shohei is an awesome player. He’s a unicorn. To be able to match that record is obviously awesome. I want to do my best so that I can get closer to his level.”

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Okamoto expressed disappointment on Friday night to reporters that the Blue Jays didn't win the game.

His homer helped bring Toronto back from 4-0 down, but the Red Sox scored the last two runs to win 6-4.

Still, Okamoto's season has been a strong one for Toronto. They hoped he'd be a boost for their lineup, and he has been.

The rest of the sluggers have been underwhelming, but Okamoto has delivered on most of his hype, and now he has a record to help prove it.