Shohei Ohtani's greatness has become almost ordinary, but the fact is that it's evolving year after year.
Ohtani was a very good pitcher and hitter early in his career, but his hitting quietly improved until he was a top-two slugger in the game. Then, in 2024, he wasn't able to throw a pitch, so he showed the world he could be one of the sport's best base stealers instead.
Thankfully for fans, Ohtani is back on the mound now, though he's only thrown four innings to this point. But it's still his bat that's carrying his value, as he's posted a 1.013 OPS, 30 home runs, and 4.0 bWAR on the season.
Ohtani was just named the starting designated hitter for the National League All-Star team. But he's got his sights set higher--on a fourth Most Valuable Player Award in the last five years.
On Thursday, Bleacher Report's Tim Kelly predicted Ohtani would do exactly that.
"Pete Crow-Armstrong, James Wood, Kyle Tucker, and Pete Alonso are among the other players who would factor into the NL MVP race if it took place today, but Ohtani would probably win it," Kelly wrote.
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"And if the Dodgers star ramps up as a pitcher while hitting 50-plus home runs for the second season in a row, he's going to run away with the NL MVP... If the five-time All-Star does win NL MVP, he would become only the second player in MLB history to win four MVPs. The other is Barry Bonds, who took home the honor a staggering seven times."
Not only is Ohtani "winning" the race, but his pitching workload is likely to continue its gradual build-up. If he can put together a decent stat line in, say, 45 innings on the mound, it's hard to imagine anyone challenging him.
Ohtani standing alone in the non-Bonds category of baseball greatness at the age of 31 (happy birthday on Saturday, Shohei) would be appropriate.
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