Is Shohei Ohtani the Best Player in Major League Baseball?

Major League Baseball is filled with superstar talent and constant debates about who the best of the bunch is.

One player that generates a lot of buzz in the conversation is the two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani. The Japanese superstar is at the forefront of the conversation, and there’s merit in him owning the title of the best player in the game. 

In saying that, let’s look at some of the numbers and see if they ultimately support that notion. 

Baseball is the leading sport where you can build a case around a player’s value using only statistics, and that’s something you would have no issues doing regarding Ohtani. The debate surrounding the Los Angeles Angels star is highlighted by his elite ability on both the mound and at the plate. Babe Ruth was one of the best players to ever step foot on a diamond, who also had immense success as one of the best hitters ever, in addition to posting complementary numbers on the bump. We’re not comparing Babe Ruth and Ohtani yet, but there’s merit in looking at their career paths and how they got to be that impactful. 

The numbers help make a really strong case for Ohtani to be in the conversation for the best player in MLB. He’s coming off a year with a 9.5 WAR, which was second to only Aaron Judge at 11.4. Judge was a beast in his conquest to set the American League record for home runs and ultimately captured the 2022 AL MVP. It’s hard to say if Judge has what it takes to replicate that type of season again. If he does, you can argue that he’s the best player in the game.

What Ohtani has going for him that Judge doesn’t is that he can also impact every fifth day on the mound. Ohtani cracked 34 long balls and 95 RBI last season, in addition to a 15-9 record on the mound, along with a sparkling 2.33 ERA and 219 strikeouts. It’s difficult enough to excel at one thing in baseball, let alone being a Cy Young-type arm and a threat to lead the league in homers. 

Ohtani’s versatility makes him a unique threat in this conversation. If this were any sport other than baseball, the lack of team success might hurt Ohtani’s reputation in this conversation, but this isn’t a game where you can simply put your team on your back, and the results will follow. Look no further than two of the game’s best players being on the same team in, Ohtani and Mike Trout, while the team hasn’t found any overall success. Speaking of Trout, he likely deserves to be a part of the conversation too, but injury concerns of late have derailed his overall production. Still, one may argue nobody is better when he’s on the field. 

To conclude, Ohtani is the type of player so unique that it’s hard to turn away from him when he’s at bat or on the mound. His elite tools as a pitcher and batter really highlight him as the current best player in baseball, even if the title has other competitors in the mix right now.