Every time you look over at him, Shohei Ohtani is doing something incredible.
The Angels mega-star has only just begun his fifth MLB season and is already the arguable face of baseball. A true titan of the sport.
Ohtani manages his stardom while hitting (mashing) for power and being a stellar fixture in the L.A. pitching rotation at the same time. We’ve never seen a unique dual-gifted player like Ohtani where MLB actively changes rules so he could get more at-bats. Given the long history before his arrival, we might never see another.
He’s that good and that gifted. He’s the best thing to happen to baseball in ages.
Our MVP 😤#OpeningDay pic.twitter.com/iQNYuXiTGp
— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) April 8, 2022
A season after unanimously cruising to his first career AL MVP, Ohtani is undoubtedly ready to mash more dingers and make more history. Fittingly, he wasted no time during the Angels’ game on Opening Day against the Astros (+1.5 favorites). It’s a mark only he could notch.
As the Angels’ ace and leadoff hitter, Ohtani became the first-ever (!) player in MLB history to throw his team’s first pitch and face his team’s first pitch of a season.
Whoa. What?
Shohei Ohtani is the first player in AL/NL history to both throw his team's first pitch of the season AND face his team's first pitch of the season as a hitter.
— MLB Stats (@MLBStats) April 8, 2022
As we know it, professional baseball has been around for well over a century! You’re telling me that no one before Ohtani ever pitched and hit first on Opening Day among the thousands of players and iterations of teams over the decades? I don’t believe it. Come on now.
I guess that’s what makes Ohtani so special. He can reach new heights, in an old sport, the near moment a season begins. What can’t he do?
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