Just two years later, it can be difficult to remember, but there was a time when Shohei Ohtani was slightly less famous and less ubiquitous than he is now — the near-certain AL MVP for the second time in three years and a man on the precipice of an unprecedented free agency. Or, at least, back then his fame was newer, which made it seem less ubiquitous.
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 16: Shohei Ohtani sits on the bench in the fourth inning during a game against the Detroit Tigers at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on September 16, 2023 in Anaheim, California. Just two years later, it can be difficult to remember, but there was a time when Shohei Ohtani wasless famous and less ubiquitous than he is now — the near-certain AL MVP for the second time in three years and a man on the precipice of an unprecedented free agency.
For his first Major League Baseball All-Star Game, Ohtani competed in the Home Run Derby, started the game on the mound for the American League and served as his team’s DH. It was the first year he hit and pitched on the same day, and what was once an experiment had become the greatest spectacle in sports.
Watching it all unfold two summers ago in Denver, I was struck by his generosity, in the form of self-sacrifice, to serve as an ambassador for the sport. Lately, though, I’ve been trying to reconcile that impression with his abject unwillingness to talk to the media.Ohtani said in July 2021, from the dais reserved for All-Star managers and their starting pitchers, through interpreter Ippei Mizuhara."But there's a lot of people that want to watch it, and I want to make those guys happy.
Those comments have stuck with me ever since. Because they are an acknowledgement of something akin to human frailty and a glimpse into the motivation that powers the busiest man in baseball to take on more than he absolutely has to — and also because there has been little else in either of those veins to replace them.
If irony is built on subverting expectations, it makes sense that Ohtani is excellent fodder for it. Lately, though, it looks less like a boyish face that belies a superman's body or his singular excellence in a sport that rewards depth, and more like Los Angeles Angels general manager Perry Minasian telling reporters curious about
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