Eat, sleep, do something extraordinary and repeat - that’s a day in the life of Shohei Ohtani. The two-way phenom never fails to wow us and he has only gone and done something unprecedented again.
According to the Los Angeles Angels website, Ohtani currently tops every section - both batting and pitching - of the players’ leaderboard.
"The Angels' team leaders page is just Shohei Ohtani" - Sporting News MLB
This year’s American League MVP race is essentially a Shohei Ohtani vs. Aaron Judge affair. Judge seems to be the overwhelming favorite at the moment. However, few continue to make a case for Ohtani due to his excellence on the plate as well as on the mound.
But in terms of influencing the team, Ohtani hasn’t really turned the Angels’ fortunes around. That’s not entirely down to him. The Angels administration and coaching staff have to accept their share of blame.
Challenging for the World Series seemed like a far-fetched idea from the beginning, but challenging for a play-off spot? That is a very justified expectation. Shohei Ohtani and the Angels have been nowhere close to contending on that front this year.
Aaron Judge in pole position to beat Shohei Ohtani for the 2022 AL MVP award
Aaron Judge is having the season of his life. Having dominated the league in terms of about every hitting metric that is there, he is the frontrunner for the 2022 American League MVP award.
After 131 games this term, Judge’s slashline reads an incredible .302/.404/.683 with an astonishing, league-leading 54 homers with a 203 wRC+ and 9.0 fWAR.
"Aaron Judge's season as of right now: 131 games, .302/.404/.683, 54 HR. A 203 wRC+ and 9.0 fWAR." - Lindsey Adler
The Yankees have hit 210 home runs this year. Judge has hit 54 of them. That’s 1/4th of their entire production.
Judge is now on pace to end the season with 65 home runs. The current American League record for most homers in a single season (61) currently belongs to Yankees legend Roger Maris.
Ohtani, in comparison to Judge, has compiled a .270/.360/.537 slashline with 32 homers in 130 games. Of course, he has pitching stats to be proud of which Judge doesn’t. His current ERA reads 2.58 with a WHIP of 1.044 and an incredible career-best 181 strikeouts in 23 starts.
With four weeks left until the postseason, the AL MVP race is poised to go down to the wire. At the moment, Judge seems to have the edge because of his numbers and the Yankees’ impending postseason presence.