Essay Sample about Shohei Ohtani's Career

Shohei Ohtani nicknamed the “Showtime” by his fans, debuted in the MLB on March 29, 2018, playing for the Angels. He has been compared to one of baseball’s legends Babe Ruth because of his two-way exploits. He started his career as a first pick for the Fighters in the 2012 draft in Japan. He was a pitcher and outfielder from 2013 to 2017 with the Fighters. Ohtani recorded the fastest pitch by a Japanese pitcher in the NPB at 102.5 mph. The Fighters posted Ohtani to MLB after the 2017 season where he was signed by the Angels.

In 2015 this marked Ohtani’s third professional season. As his offensive production declined somewhat his performance as a pitcher was among the best in the league. This earned him the starting role in the 2015 All-Star Game and pitching spot in the end-of-year Pacific League Best Nine awards. Ohtani led the league in wins and winning percentages with a 15-5 record in just 22 starts.

In his short career on November 18, 2021, Ohtani unanimously won the American League’s Most Valuable Player. Ohtani claimed all 30 first-place votes from the Baseball Writers Association of America. This made him the fifth

unanimous baseball player to win the MVP. In 2021 Ohtani’s season was formally recognized as “historically significant” and a “major impact on the sport” by Commissioner Rob Manfred. Ohtani is known to be a record-breaker as he continues to wow fans with his talent. 

ESPN reports, “He became the first player in baseball history to hit at least 30 home runs in a year when he also made at least 10 pitching appearances.” He has made 23 starts for his Angels team in his short career. He has become the sixth player in history with at least 45 home runs and at least 25 stolen bases within the same season. Not only was he having an amazing season a fellow baseball player Mike Trout wrote “At times, I felt like I was back in Little League. To watch a player throw eight innings, hit a home run, stealing a base and then going to play right field was incredible. What impresses me the most about him, though, is the way he carries himself both on and off the field. With so much on his plate daily, he still manages to do it with a smile.

On May 7, 2019, Ohtani played in his first game after undergoing Tommy John Surgery. In June his 13 games of the season he became the first Japanese-born player to hit for the cycle in MLB history. On September 12 his season prematurely ended as he needed to repair a bipartite patella. The 2020 season did not start until July 24 due to Covid. Ohtani's season was not one of his best, but he continued to work to get back to being the player he was.

In 2021 he became the first pitcher in league history to register 100 strikeouts while holding a major league-leading 35 home runs. Ohtani was unanimously voted the American League Most Valuable Player, becoming the 23rd pitcher and first designated hitter to win the award. Additionally, Ohtani’s  2021 season was recognized for two Guinness World Records titles: the first MLB player to achieve 100+ innings and record 100+ strikeouts as a pitcher, and 100+ RBIs, hits and runs as a batter in a single

season, and the first player to start the MLB All-Star Game as a pitcher and a designated hitter. He also became the 16th recipient of the Commissioner Historic Achievement Award, awarded by Commissioner Rob Manfred,  who formally recognized  Ohtani 2021 season as ”historically significant.” and “unprecedented” calling it “so special that it was important to recognize the historic achievement that took place in 2021 with an award just about 2021.” Ohtani was offered Japan’s national honor, the People’s  Honor Award, by the Prime Minister of Japan in recognition of his accomplishments, but Ohtani rejected it, saying “it was still too early for such an award."