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These three Shohei Ohtani statistics show just how insane he has been

By Zachary Rotman |
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Los Angeles Angels v Texas Rangers / Tim Heitman/GettyImages
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Los Angeles Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani is the best baseball player in the world. That's pretty unanimous at this point thanks to his ability to hit and pitch at a star level.

Aaron Judge might've won the AL MVP last season, but the award is Ohtani's to lose every year as long as he's in the AL and healthy. He seems to be on cruise control this season heading towards his second AL MVP in the last three seasons, and he should win it unanimously.

Even with how awesome Ohtani has been, his pitching has underwhelmed slightly. His 3.29 ERA is higher than expected, and he's walked more while also allowing more home runs than usual. Still, he's been a borderline ace this season, and what he's doing with the bat is historic.

1) Shohei Ohtani has a legitimate shot at the AL Triple Crown

It's only June and a lot can change, I definitely get that, but Shohei Ohtani is firmly in the Triple Crown race.

With Aaron Judge sidelined, Ohtani has taken the AL lead in home runs. Judge is at 19 and there is no timetable for him to return. Shohei can take a monster lead in the home run race by the time Judge returns. Judge sits in second in the AL so Ohtani already has breathing room and will likely generate a whole lot more of it.

Ohtani is tied for the AL lead with 56 RBI. He's tied with Rafael Devers of the Boston Red Sox. It'll be a bit harder for Ohtani to lap the field in RBI considering guys like Adolis Garcia and Yordan Alvarez are both one RBI behind, but Ohtani still has as good of a shot as anyone.

Shohei is hitting .314 with a 1.005 OPS with runners in scoring position. With Taylor Ward playing better and Mickey Moniak being great out of that leadoff spot, Ohtani should have more chances to drive guys in, and has a realistic shot at an RBI title.

The batting title is going to be Ohtani's biggest obstacle. He's hitting .300 right now which is awesome, but ranks sixth in the AL. Ohtani has never been a big average hitter with his high being .286 in 106 games played back in 2019.

Even while the odds are against him, with the way Shohei is going right now I wouldn't count him out. At least Luis Arraez and his .388 average is in the NL.

2) Shohei Ohtani is doing things only legends have done

Shohei Ohtani is in the midst of the best offensive stretch of his career. He's been carrying this Angels offense on his back for weeks now, and it's been absurd to see.

This is only a six-game sample, but seriously? He's doing things only Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds have done before. While it's a bit surprising that even someone like Mike Trout hasn't racked up an extra-base hit, drawn a walk, and scored a run in six straight games, it's just something else that makes Ohtani great.

In his last six games, Ohtani has nine hits in 19 at-bats. He's hit five home runs (none to the pull-side) and has driven in ten runs. He's scored eight runs and has drawn ten walks. Only one of these walks have been intentional.

Let me repeat. In six games he's hit five home runs, driven in ten, scored eight, and drawn ten walks. How that's possible I have no idea, but Ohtani is quite literally carrying this team. What he did in Texas with all of those opposite field home runs was truly a sight to see.

He's showing us why he will command the first $500+ million dollar deal in baseball history, and with another game against the Royals this afternoon, who's to say that Ohtani can't have another huge day?

3) Shohei Ohtani's hot streak has gone on for much longer than just six games

Shohei Ohtani has been raging hot on this road trip, but he's also been raging hot for a good month now.

Since appearing at his home away from home, Guaranteed Rate Field, Ohtani has been unbelievable. We all know the slump he was in before facing the White Sox, and since then, wow.

In 18 games played he's slashed .412/.512/.1.015 with 11 home runs and 23 RBI. He's gotten a hit more than 40% of the time, gotten on base more than half of the time, and that 1.015 number is his slugging percentage, not his OPS. Unheard of numbers.

Ohtani has scored 19 runs, has ten more hits than games played, and has drawn 15 walks compared to 14 strikeouts. Remember when Ohtani was flailing at pitches nowhere near the zone? Yeah, that's not happening anymore.

Ohtani has seen his batting average rise from .263 to .300 in just over two weeks. He's seen his OPS rise from .845 to 1.012 in just over two weeks. This kind of statline he's put up over the last 18 games is something only Lou Gehrig has done in the modern era.

This tweet is from Friday, but since then, the tally is Ohtani one and Oakland one. So in the last 32 days Shohei Ohtani has hit 14 home runs while the Oakland Athletics team has hit 15.

None of these stats point to what makes him as insane as he is, his pitching. Ohtani is still pitching at an all-star level while doing historic things offensively.

I've said this before and will say it again. There has never been anything quite like Shohei Ohtani. There's a good chance you will never see another player like Shohei Ohtani ever again. Please, don't fixate on the free agency. Enjoy this man playing the game we love, especially in an Angels uniform. He's doing things we've never seen before.

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