Shohei Ohtani is having an extraordinary season, one like we have never seen before. His skill on the mound, coupled with his dominance at the plate, is unparalleled throughout the major leagues.
He’s the modern-day Bambino—and yet even Babe Ruth wasn’t stealing 20-plus bases, hitting 40-plus homers and throwing 100 m.p.h. in the same season. Only Shohei can. If you were to Frankenstein every unique talent into one player, you’d get Shohei Ohtani. He has the power of Bryce Harper, the pitching of Max Scherzer and the speed of Trea Turner.
Not only is he incredible on the field, but off the field he’s a gentleman. His teammates have only good things to say about Shohei, and he is great with the media and fans too. You can tell he is a hard worker, from his improvement year to year and his vertical-jump increase to the career-year he’s put together in 2021.
Shohei has been a true joy to watch this year. I am a huge fan, and he is easily worth the price of admission. I can’t wait to see how he finishes the season.
Rodriguez is an ESPN analyst and a former professional baseball player
- How an Alleged Spy Balloon Derailed an Important U.S.-China Meeting
- Effective Altruism Has a Toxic Culture of Sexual Harassment and Abuse, Women Say
- Inside Bolsonaro's Surreal New Life as a Florida Man—and MAGA Darling
- 'Return to Office' Plans Spell Trouble for Working Moms
- 8 Ways to Read More Books—and Why You Should
- Why Aren't Movies Sexy Anymore?
- Column: Elon Musk Should Not Be in Charge of the Night Sky
- How Logan Paul's Crypto Empire Fell Apart
- 80 for Brady May Not Be a Masterpiece. But the World Needs More Movies Like This
