The game of baseball has evolved a lot through the years.
Since the late-1800s, when the National and American Leagues were starting to form what we now call MLB, elements such as rules, plays, patterns, and other things have changed.
Back in the day, there were more pitchers who hit.
None of them come even close to what Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani has achieved to this point in his career.
He is an MVP award winner, a World Baseball Classic champion (and MVP), and has set all kinds of marks and records for his ability to pitch and hit at the highest level.
He is, evidently, an outlier: a tiny percentage of players train to do both activities at the highest level, and there is a reason for it: it’s just too hard.
When he hit his 40th home run of the season on Thursday against the Seattle Mariners, he added yet another record to his long resume.
“Shohei Ohtani has 2 seasons with 40 home runs and 150 pitching strikeouts in his career. No other player has done this once in MLB history,” ESPN Stats & Info tweeted.
Shohei Ohtani has 2 seasons with 40 home runs and 150 pitching strikeouts in his career.
No other player has done this once in MLB history. pic.twitter.com/tUVkmZskU2
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) August 4, 2023
During a long period in the early days of MLB, nobody hit 40 homers in a season, until Babe Ruth came along.
Strikeouts weren’t really that common back then, either.
Even with the evolution of the game, hitting 40 long balls wasn’t for everyone, and while numerous pitcher can reach 150 strikeouts, it’s nothing to sneeze at, either.
Now, imagine reaching both milestones in the same season…twice.
We are talking, quite possibly, about the best and most complete player ever to step foot on a baseball field in Ohtani.
He does things that no one else does, plain and simple.
NEXT: MLB Insider Highlights Shohei Ohtani's Latest Legendary Night
