Center fielder and ace Shohei Ohtani, 29. After shaking up the major leagues with his pitcher-hitter “idoryu,” he made major league history again this offseason. He signed a record-breaking 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. I was skeptical when the total was projected to be $500 million, but his average salary went up to $70 million.
He won nine games and hit 46 homers and 100 RBIs in 2021 and 10 games and 44 homers and 95 RBIs in 2023. He was a “unanimous” American League MVP both times. Last season, he won 15 games and hit 34 homers and 95 RBIs in regulation innings and regulation at-bats.
He’s like a superhero from another dimension.
Moving from the American League West to the National League West, he’ll be a catcher only next year. He will take a year off as a pitcher after undergoing surgery on his right elbow in September. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he might use Ohtani in the outfield. With the Angels, 카지노사이트 he was a designated hitter.
In 2019, Ohtani was limited to the outfield as he recovered from right elbow surgery.
In June, he became the first Japanese player to hit a cycle against the Tampa Bay Rays. 106 games, he batted .258 with 110 hits, 18 home runs, 62 RBIs, and an OPS of .848 until he was lost for the season in early September with a knee injury.
2019 was his second year in the big leagues. I’m looking forward to his seventh season in 2024, when he’ll be switching teams.
How many home runs can Ohtani hit if he only bats?
Former Japan National Baseball Team manager Hideki Kuriyama (62), catcher “legend” Yatsuya Furuta (58), former Yakult Swallows manager Daisuke Matsuzaka (43), and original “monster pitcher” Daisuke Matsuzaka (43) appeared on a Japanese broadcast program on the 16th to make their predictions for Ohtani in 2024.
Kuriyama said, “It’s normal for him to pitch and hit. It would be awkward for him to do only one,” Kuriyama said. Ohtani has been pitching and hitting since his days with the Nippon Ham Fighters. It comes naturally to him, something that is impossible for other players.
Kuriyama said, “If you’re only a hitter, you can think a lot of unnecessary things,” but he predicted that Ohtani would hit 74 home runs next year and 89 in 2025. That would change major league home run history.
Barry Bonds’ 73 home runs in 2001 for the San Francisco Giants is the most in a single season in the majors.
Ohtani became the first Asian player to win the home run title this year.
Kuriyama is a former Nippon Ham manager who has been a strong supporter of Otani’s “idoryu”. He invited Ohtani to join the Japanese team for the World Baseball Classic (WBC) and led them to victory.
Furuta took a sobering view. After his elbow surgery, he said he would only play 100 games out of a total of 162. He predicted 25 home runs as a hitter next season and 15 wins and 60 home runs as a two-hitter in 2025. I projected a third MVP award in 2025.
Matsuzaka was projected for 30 homers and 100 RBIs in 2024 and 15 wins, 55 homers and 130 RBIs in 2025.
Dodger Stadium, the home of the Dodgers, is widely recognized as a pitcher-friendly ballpark. No Dodger has ever hit 50 home runs there. The most is 49 by Shawn Green in 2001. Only three other players have more than 45, including Green.
If Ohtani wins the National League home run title next year, 먹튀검증 he will become the fourth player in history to lead both leagues in home runs. No player has ever done it in consecutive years.