Shohei Ohtani has done nothing but impress MLB fans ever since he came to the league in 2018. He’s been toted as the league’s unicorn with his ability to both pitch and hit at an elite level. He’s nothing short of a modern-day Babe Ruth.
The Los Angeles Angels have seemingly figured out the best way to deploy Ohtani during the season. When he wasn’t pitching, the team deployed him as their designated hitter. This took a lot of workload off his arm and it really showed when he was on the mound.
ERA+ takes a pitcher’s ERA and adjusts it for ballpark factors and opponents. It’s deemed the most universally accepted tool for measuring a pitcher’s performance.
Ohtani had a better ERA+ than both Carlos Rodon and Max Scherzer. On top of that, he had a better OPS+ than Mookie Betts and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. He rivals the league’s top hitters and pitchers, which is absurd.
“He’s in a league of his own, incredible talent!” one fan tweeted.
“The one and only unicorn,” another fan explained.
Some fans are hoping that this is the start of two-way players becoming the norm in baseball. Many players grow up both hitting and pitching but are told to pick one or the other as they get older. If this was never a thing in the first place, who knows how many Shohei Ohtani-type players there could have been?
Other fans can’t believe he didn’t win the MVP Award this year. They think he was outright robbed of the award as he was the best player on both sides of the ball.
Shohei Ohtani has found himself these last two seasons
