MLB fans should be thankful for the opportunity to watch Shohei Ohtani play baseball every night.
He is the best player in the game by a wide margin and continues to do things that no one has ever seen.
When he first came to MLB, not many people thought he could be a two-way player through a full 162-game season.
Not only is he doing it, but he’s elite in both hitting and pitching.
Ohtani’s most recent accomplishment involves him in the batter’s box.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, Ohtani has played in 80 games this season and leads the MLB in home runs and is tied for first in triples.
This is the last season a player has led both categories since Jim Rice did so in 1978.
Shohei Ohtani has played 80 games in 2023. He leads MLB in home runs (28) and shares the lead in triples (5).
It’s the last in a season that a player has led in both categories since 1978, when Jim Rice played in 163 games and finished the season leading in HR (46) and 3B (15). pic.twitter.com/U49IW4op7R
— ESPN Stats and Information (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 29, 2023
You just don’t see this kind of power/speed combination in baseball much anymore.
He’s doing all of this at the plate while still performing as one of the best pitchers in baseball.
Ohtani is the heavy favorite for AL MVP and there are still three months left to play the regular season.
At this point, everyone just wants to see what Ohtani can do on the biggest stage.
He has yet to make the playoffs in his MLB career.
Many hope the Angels can change that this year.
They are 44-38 on the season and are six games behind the Texas Rangers in the AL West.
But they are only 0.5 games away from a wild card berth.
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The graphic shows the legendary rhythm carried by Shohei Ohtani
