Angels News: Shohei Ohtani Named a Finalist for the AL MVP Award
This doesn't come as much of a surprise, but it's now official: Shohei Ohtani is a finalist for the American League MVP Award for a second consecutive season.
Last season, Ohtani was named the 19th unanimous MVP in MLB history. This season, he was somehow even better.
Ohtani became the first player in MLB history to qualify among the league leaders as both a pitcher and hitter.
As a pitcher, here's how Ohtani stacked up among the rest of the American League:
Wins: 15 (T-4th)
ERA: 2.33 (4th)
Strikeouts: 219 (3rd)
K/9: 11.87 (1st)
WHIP: 1.01 (5th)
Opp. Avg: .203 (6th)
Here were his ranks among AL batters:
HRs: 34 (4th)
RBIs: 95 (7th)
BBs: 72 (7th)
OPS: 875 (5th)
Triples: 6 (4th)
IBBs: 14 (3rd)
Ohtani's 2022 season was truly extraordinary, and unlike anything we've ever seen before.
He's already established himself as the greatest two-way player in MLB history, and seems to only be getting better.
He's competing against Aaron Judge of the Yankees and Yordan Alvarez of the Astros for the award.
Whether he wins the MVP or not (and he's up against some stiff competition with Judge), his 2022 season should always be remembered as one of the greatest in MLB history. We have never seen a player like Shohei Ohtani, and we may never again. So let's just appreciate what we have in Ohtani — and good news Angels fans: you'll for sure get to appreciate him for the 2023 season.
