Shohei Ohtani is a baseball savant doing what has never been seen in Major League Baseball history. The Los Angeles Angels all-star pitcher from Japan hit 46 home runs and recorded 156 strikeouts in 2021.
The last player to both pitch and hit at an elite level was Babe Ruth, a century ago. But the Bambino stopped pitching relatively early in his career to concentrate on hitting. And no one ever called Ruth fast. Ohtani, the unanimous American League MVP, stole 26 bases last year.
“There is pressure,” Ohtani says of the season ahead, “but I’m more excited.”
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