Shohei Ohtani falls in NL MVP 2025 race with $340M rival in pole position

Reigning National League MVP Shohei Ohtani hasn't had a flying start to the season as many would've expected. The Japanese star's start sees him drop down in the race for early NL MVP contenders.

Shohei Ohtani entered Tuesday's game against the Miami Marlins with six home runs and nine RBIs. Harold Reynolds and Brian Kenny on MLB Tonight discussed "The Great Race" for the NL MVP.

Ohtani, who won the MVP award for a second consecutive season last year, was in fifth place in the NL MVP contender rankings by MLB Network at the start of the season. However, his stocks have fallen further with the Japanese superstar ranked ninth in Tuesday's edition of the show.

While the three-time MVP is lagging behind in the race, rivals San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. is currently leading the race for the ultimate personal accolade in the NL.

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Tatis Jr., who is on a $340 million deal with the Padres, is batting .346 this season with eight home runs and 18 RBIs. The All-Star outfielder has been a driving force behind San Diego's start to the 2025 season, which saw the team lead the NL West until recent weeks.

While the Padres star leads the race for now, New York Mets' All-Star infielder Pete Alonso trails Fernando Tatis Jr. in the second spot with the Arizona Diamondbacks' Corbin Carroll in third place.

Shohei Ohtani shows dad strength against Marlins

Shohei Ohtani became a father for the first time after his wife, Mamiko, gave birth to a daughter earlier this month. The Japanese two-way phenom registered his first home run since the birth of his daughter in the game against the Miami Marlins on Tuesday.

Ohtani went deep against Sandy Alcantara from the leadoff spot to tie the game at 1-1. Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman added two runs for the team as the Dodgers took a 3-1 lead after the first inning. The Dodgers led 7-1 after the end of the fourth inning.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash