It’s crazy to think that the regular season is already two-thirds over, which means that end-of-season award predictions will become more frequent.
According to national baseball journalist Jon Heyman, the National League Most Valuable Player award will be given to Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani.
“I do believe Shohei Ohtani is the [NL] MVP at this point,” he stated. “Right now, with [Mookie] Betts missing two months, the other guys having fantastic years as DHs, such as Marcell Ozuna. [Therefore], I feel Ohtani is the National League MVP.”
Ohtani is poised for a tremendous season, his first with the Dodgers and in the National League. He is also doing everything while recovering from his second Tommy John surgery.
If he were to win the trophy, it would change the course of baseball history.
This would be his third MVP award, tying him with Mike Trout, Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez, Mike Schmidt, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Roy Campanella, Stan Musial, Joe DiMaggio, and Jimmie Foxx.
Ohtani would become only the second player to win MVP in both leagues, following Frank Robinson, who did so with the Cincinnati Reds in 1961 and the Baltimore Orioles in 1966.
Entering Wednesday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Ohtani leads the National League in multiple categories, including runs (90), home runs (37), slugging (.623), OPS (1.007), OPS+ (180), and total bases (287).
He’s also getting closer to a 40-40 season, which would place him in an elite group with only five members currently. Through Wednesday’s game, Ohtani has 37 home runs and 35 steals. If this rate continues throughout the final 40 games of the season, the designated hitter should finish with roughly 52 home runs and 48 steals.
Shawn Green set the Dodgers’ single-season home run record in 2001, with 49. Ohtani’s career high is 46. Since passing his previous high of 26 on July 28, he has been setting new career-bests with each bag he swipes.
Ohtani’s season is one for the record books. No Dodger has ever hit 40 home runs and stolen 40 bases in the same season, but that should change any day now.
