MVP candidate Shohei Ohtani again makes MLB history in last game of season

Shohei Ohtani is not just living up to the hype, he’s exceeding it.

The “Japanese Babe Ruth” is doing things in baseball not even Ruth did with the statistics he puts up. 

On Wednesday, baseball’s final day of the regular season, Ohtani added one more bullet to his resume.

Ohtani reached the 162-inning mark in pitching Wednesday against the Oakland Athletics, becoming the first player in MLB history to qualify for both hitting and pitching leader boards.

To qualify, a pitcher must throw 162-plus innings, and a hitter must have at least 502 plate appearances. Ohtani threw five innings Wednesday, giving him a career-high 166 on the season. He also finished the season with 666 plate appearances.

Being a full-time pitcher and hitter is impressive in itself. In 2018, Ohtani became the first player to hit 20 home runs and strike out 60 batters.

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Ohtani is the defending AL MVP, and if he doesn’t win it this year, it’s because Aaron Judge hit 62 home runs, breaking Roger Maris’ AL record, and was in the Triple Crown race until the final day of the season.

Ohtani’s 2.33 ERA was the sixth-lowest in all of baseball, and his 11.9 K/9 was the best mark in the majors. His .875 OPS was the 10th-best in MLB, and his 34 homers were tied for 11th.

He had a lower ERA than Braves ace Max Fried and a higher OPS than Dodgers star Mookie Betts.

His stats earned him a $30 million deal for next year, the most ever for an arbitration-eligible player.