This Shohei Ohtani stat should put all players on notice
By Scott Rogust
Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani has officially made history with his latest home run on Wednesday against the Boston Red Sox.
The star of the first half of the 2021 season has undoubtedly been Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani. While his pitching numbers are worthy of gawking over, he is truly making a name for himself for his unreal slugging abilities inside the batter’s box. And to the surprise of no one, Ohtani has hit another home run, and he made history in the process.
In the bottom of the fifth-inning against the Boston Red Sox, Ohtani crushed a solo home run into the right field stands off pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez to break a 2-2 tie. This was Ohtani’s 32nd homer of the year, the most by any Japanese-born player in a single MLB season. He broke the record previously set by Hideki Matsui, who hit 31 back in 2004 with the New York Yankees.
Angels: Shohei Ohtani hits most home runs in a single-season by a Japanese-born player
As CBS Sport kindly points out, the Angels still have 76 games remaining in the 2021 campaign.
Those 32 home runs that Ohtani has hit thus far is also the most by any player in the majors right now, with Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. holding the second-most with 28 entering Wednesday night.
Ohtani made history earlier this week, as he was the first player in MLB history to be named to the All-Star Game as both a position player and as a pitcher. The Angels’ designated hitter is not done there, as he is slated to compete in the Home Run Derby on July 12, the night before the 2021 All-Star Game.
Through 81 games thus far, Ohtani is slashing .279/.364/.700 while recording 69 RBI, 63 runs scored and 81 hits. As a pitcher, Ohtani posted a 4-1 overall record, a 3.49 ERA, a 1.21 WHIP, 87 strikeouts and 35 walks through 67.0 innings of work (13 starts).
Based off what he has done prior to the All-Star break, it’s hard to envision anyone other than Ohtani winning the AL MVP award later this year.