Shohei Ohtani: The Greatest of All Time

Shohei Ohtani is not merely the best baseball player alive; he is arguably the greatest athlete the world has ever witnessed. While the immense history of the sport spans generations of legends, it is only fitting that the biggest, most supernova-like star in the game calls Los Angeles—the global city of stars and cinema—his home.

As a lifelong baseball historian, I have stood witness to history: the unmatched peak of Barry Bonds, the competitive fire of Derek Jeter, the effortless majesty of Ken Griffey Jr. I’ve felt the electricity of World Series clinchers, the tension of Game 7s (including the 2019 classic), the historic duel of Clemens vs. Maddux, and the sheer chaos of the "greatest day in baseball," the 2011 season finale. I have seen the pantheon of greats with my own eyes, yet I have never encountered anything as genuinely unprecedented as Shohei Ohtani.

The only reasonable historical comparison is Babe Ruth, but even The Babe's two-way dominance was sequential, with his primary pitching career largely preceding his tenure as "The Sultan of Swat." The sheer diversity and global competition of the modern era make Ohtani's accomplishments exponentially more staggering.

Consider the reality of his last five years: four unanimous MVP awards and a World Baseball Classic title with an MVP. He became the first player ever to achieve a 50-homer/50-stolen-base season, doing so while simultaneously navigating the recovery of his pitching arm. He is a First Team All-MLB player as both a pitcher and a designated hitter. He won in Japan, he won for Japan, and now he wins for LA.

Ohtani’s career defies logic. Imagine telling a fan a decade ago that a starting pitcher would throw six shutout innings with ten strikeouts and, in the same game, hit three home runs. You'd be laughed out of the room. Suggesting that an ace pitcher would simultaneously post 50+ home runs and 50+ stolen bases while rehabbing his arm would be enough to end the conversation entirely. Don’t even get me started on hitting 2 home runs and reaching the base 9 times. Yes, these things really happened.

Los Angeles defines cinematic greatness; Shohei Ohtani is cinema personified. New York and LA are the only two markets expansive enough to properly showcase a talent that transcends baseball and enters the realm of global iconography. LA little bit more because Shohei can deliver a documentary worthy night, any night. He fits LA like Magic Johnson’s smile, Meryl Streep’s acting and Kobe Bryant’s Knack for raising the bar as a performer when the eyes were on him. While he writes his legend today on the diamond for Los Angeles, the studios of Hollywood are simply gathering footage for the day they turn his life into a breathtaking cinematic experience. Let’s not take this for granted because we may never see anything like this again. LA been blessed with “Showtime” and now “SHO-TIME”