Who is Tungsten Arm O'Doyle? Player from viral tweet has come to exemplify Shohei Ohtani's Angels woes

After his dominating performances pitching and hitting for his home country at the recent World Baseball Classic, Shohei Ohtani was expected to carry that success over to his team.

The Japanese superstar plays for the Los Angeles Angels, who have not made the postseason since 2014. Despite boasting two players who have won MVP and Rookie of the Year Awards—Ohtani and teammate Mike Trout—the Angels are seen as perennial underperformers by fans everywhere.

As frustrating as this is for Angels fans, some have found a way to draw humor from the paradox of the team. In 2021, a fan tweeted a sarcastic quote about how Ohtani's performances have only been matched by "Tungsten Arm O'Doyle," a fictional moniker used to personify the legends of yore.

"Every time I see an Angels highlight it's like 'Mike Trout hit three homes runs and raised his average to .528 while Shohei Ohtani did something that hasn't been done since 'Tungsten Arm' O'Doyle of the 1921 Akron Groomsmen, as the Tigers defeated the Angels 8-3'" - matttomic

Ohtani's comparison to the fictional legend is then juxtaposed against a hypothetical loss to the Detroit Tigers, exemplifying Shohei Ohtani's apparent inability to translate personal success into wins for his team.

On March 30, 2023, Ohtani took the mound for his team against the Oakland Athletics. Despite a strong performance in which the 28-year-old struck out ten A's over six shutout innings, Angels reliever Aaron Loup surrendered a pair of late runs, and the team lost by a 2-1 margin.

"Shohei Ohtani. He has allowed the lowest batting average against (.152) with runners in scoring position over the last three seasons among starting pitchers. #GoHalos #OpeningDay" - Inside Edge

In the wake of a deflating start to the season, the "Tungsten Arm O'Doyle" trope has been revived by fans who fear that while Ohtani may surpass more historical milestones, the Los Angeles Angels will be no better than they were last year.

Shohei Ohtani may be worth more money than Tungsten Arm O'Doyle ever was

Despite his numerous history-making achievements on the field, the two-way sensation looks set to potentially make history for contract size. Ohtani is set to assume free agency when his one-year $30 million deal expires after 2023 and may be liable to attract the largest contract sizes ever offered in the history of Major League Baseball.