“He’s always taking his swing” - Shohei Ohtani heaps praise on Aaron Judge’s unwavering consistency despite crunch situations 

Two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani has been a formidable force for the Los Angeles Dodgers this season. The LA club just finished a three-game series with the New York Yankees, suffering only one loss and missing the chance to sweep them.

In a recent interview with ESPN, Ohtani was asked about his views on Yankees captain Aaron Judge. In response, the Japanese superstar expressed his admiration for Judge, discussing what he has learned from watching him over the years:

“I see every year but I’m just surprised at how big he is. And also regardless of the situation, he’s always taking his swing, and that’s something that I really can learn a lot from,” Ohtani said.

Ohtani and Judge competed against each other for the AL MVP award in the past during their time in the American League. Ohtani won the award in 2021 and 2023, while Judge won it in 2022.

Although Shohei Ohtani, now in the National League with the Dodgers, cannot compete with Aaron Judge for AL MVP, he still learns from and admires him on the field.

Shohei Ohtani outruns Yankees Aaron Judge's throw amid Dodgers' 6-4 defeat

Sunday’s game was a 6-4 defeat for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the New York Yankees in the last game of their three-game series. During the contest, the Yankees outfielder tried to throw out the Dodgers star as he attempted to score on a fly ball to right field.

Here is the video of the moment shared by MLB's official X/Twitter account:

As seen in the clip, Judge’s attempt to stop Ohtani fails with the Japanese star sliding in safely, making the score, 5-4. Judge's throw had a speed of 93.4 mph, nearing his season's best, while Ohtani's speed of 29.4 feet per second was equally impressive, per MLB.com's Sarah Langs.

The Los Angeles Dodgers (41-26) are at the top of the NL West standings. The franchise is set to face the Texas Rangers on Tuesday in the opener of their three-game series. Meanwhile, the New York Yankees (46-21) sit atop the AL East standings.