LOS ANGELES тАУ Tributes continued to pour in for Shohei Ohtani on Thursday, when American website Sporting News named the Los Angeles Angels two-way star its тАЬAthlete of the Year.тАЭ
Ohtani hit 46 home runs while being one of Major League BaseballтАЩs better pitchers. The honor comes after the Associated Press named him тАЬMale Athlete of the YearтАЭ on Wednesday and Sporting News declared OhtaniтАЩs 2021 the greatest individual season in sports history the week before.
тАЬWhat the norm-slaying, jaw-dropping, quasi-superhero unanimous AL MVP did this year for the Angels, and for baseball at large, was so amazing that it makes the debate over which athletes had the best season barely worth having. ThatтАЩs why heтАЩs the easy choice for The Sporting NewsтАЩ 2021 Athlete of the Year,тАЭ wrote Sporting News MLB editor Jason Foster.
In addition to his home runs, Ohtani both drove in and scored 100-plus runs, led the American League in triples and went 9-2 on the mound with a 3.18 ERA, striking out 156 batters in just over 130 innings.
The story included a May 19 tweet from MLB pitcher Marcus Stroman.
тАЬOhtani is a mythical legend in human form. What heтАЩs doing is beyond incredible. Everyone in the big leagues is in awe of his talent. After games, I be running to my phone to check and see what Ohtani did on the night,тАЭ tweeted Stroman.
In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.
By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.
SUBSCRIBE NOW
