Why is Shohei Ohtani called the unicorn of baseball? Exploring the phenomenon of baseball’s two-way superstar and his unprecedented skills

Through several big-league seasons, Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani has earned the nickname "unicorn." This moniker has followed him for years and seems increasingly fitting, even in 2024.

Ohtani is called the unicorn because he can ordinarily pitch and hit in the same games and seasons, but he has not done so in 2024 due to Tommy John surgery at the end of 2023. While the Dodgers remain alive in the playoffs and hinted at his return to the mound, they currently do not expect him to pitch this season.

The Dodgers will, however, put him back in their rotation as soon as he's healthy and able. Then, he may not hit 54 home runs and steal 58 bases, but he will once again be both a top pitcher and top hitter in MLB and likely win more MVP awards.

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Shohei Ohtani remained a unicorn in 2024

Even in the current season, Ohtani worked as a unicorn of sorts. The unicorn moniker refers to being the only one of something. In the past, it's been used because he's the only baseball player to pitch and hit currently. Even when compared to Babe Ruth, who also pitched and hit, Ohtani has outperformed Ruth and stayed longer as a pitcher.

Shohei Ohtani is a unicorn (Credits: IMAGN)

This year, he did not pitch, but he was still as unicorn as ever. Ohtani hit more than 50 home runs and stole more than 50 bases. That is something no player has ever done, nor is anyone likely to do. Thus, even when he doesn't pitch, he is still the only one to do something in Major League Baseball.

In the last few seasons, Elly De La Cruz and Ronald Acuna Jr. have joined Ohtani in stealing at least 50 bases, but neither hit 50 home runs. Acuna, in his 2023 MVP season, hit 40, but that was a career-best. This year, De La Cruz hit 25, so it would take a large jump for him to hit 50.

There has not been a player to do what Ohtani has done in many different ways, and he has earned the nickname the unicorn.