J.D. Martinez is constantly marveling at Shohei Ohtani.
Given the opportunity to meet him, the Boston Red Sox slugger cashed in on the opportunity to share the nickname he has for the Los Angeles Angels star.
“I said, ‘Oh, Babe Ruth. Nice to meet you, too,'” Martinez said Monday, via MassLive. “Because that’s what he is. Who else has done it really? It’s impressive and it’s something that’s very difficult to do.”
Martinez is right, obviously. Not only is Ohtani one of few two-way players in the game’s history, but he’s elite as both a pitcher and hitter. The Japanese phenom leads MLB with 33 homers thus far this season, all while boasting a 4-1 record with 3.49 ERA in 13 starts. Ohtani will both pitch and hit in the All-Star Game on Tuesday.
If he keeps it up, it will be 100 percent fair to consider Ohtani a modern-day Ruth.
