Shohei Ohtani keeps doing things no baseball player has ever done.
The Dodgers superstar unanimously won the National League’s Most Valuable Player award Thursday, becoming the first full-time designated hitter to take home the hardware.
In his first season with the Dodgers, Ohtani became the first big leaguer to have 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. Ohtani’s 54 homers were top in the NL and his 59 stolen bases ranked second in all of MLB.
Shohei was also second in the NL with a .310 batting average, and he lead the league in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS. In other words, he was the best hitter by far.
It’s the third MVP award for Ohtani, who was twice named AL MVP when he was playing across town with the Angels.
Difference is, Ohtani was pitching and hitting back then … and this year he was limited to being a DH as he recovered from off-season surgery on his pitching elbow.
Just goes to show how dominant Ohtani was in the batter’s box in 2024 … and how much of a difference-maker he was for the Dodgers, who finished with the best record in MLB and ultimately won the World Series.
With the win, Ohtani joins Hall of Famer Frank Robinson as the only players to earn MVP in both the AL and NL. He’s also the first player to win the award unanimously three times.