Ohtani has raked out of the gate...spider tack or no spider tack, many left him for average and left the hype train when it stalled or stopped due to injuries, he 's breaking down, he can't pitch, he needs to just be a hitter, he'll have injuries throughout his career and fade away, Shohei doesn't care what you think, he's a notorious student, insistent on learning and getting better and he we are, all the hype jumpers are running back towards the train, Ohtani slashing to a .279 33 homer 70 rbi first half and thieved 12 bags too for good measure, for most players that would be a successful 2021 season. Keep in mind he's done this a good part of the year without the Mike Trout "protection" makes it all the more impressive. Did you know he pitched too? I jest obviously but he's equally impressive on that front, 4 wins only one blemish 3.79 era and in 67 frames 87 batters walked back to their respective dugout without putting a ball in play. He's about to be a HR derby participant on Monday and the AL Starting pitcher on Tuesday night.....and bat leadoff! He's compared to the Babe, talk about a lofty comparison, While I get it, Keep in mind the Babe only multitasked it for 2 seasons 1918-19 and became a hitter only because he self admitted that it was too difficult to do both, so Shohei is on pace to really do something no one has truly done for an extended time in baseball ever..I'm not saying he is better than Mr.Ruth but right now what Ohtani is doing is absolutely stunning.
Shohei Ohtani is just what the baseball hobby needed, in a season with scoring down, some big name injuries including his own teammate Trout, he's been a breath of fresh hobby air, I summize many of you reading this are having "seller's remorse" for dumping their Ohtani stashes when things got Oh-Dicey, I rode it out, in a hobby where it's "what did you do for me today" I have always been patient, maybe that's from 30 plus years of hobbying and experiences on both sides of the table, I knew there would have to be adjustments and injuries can happen to any one, sometimes the turtle wins the race, the hobby rabbits want a mulligan.
His 2018 Bowman Chrome PSA 10 was a very stale, hard to sell $268 card has vaulted to a very in demand $1.8k card, thanks #CardLadder and many tears cried by early jumpers. Where am I going here? Patience indeed sometimes pays off, and those already writing off the Robert's, Adell's, Kelenic's and Wander's after a very small sample size, see Ohtani, sometimes riding the roller coaster is worth that stomach drop. To the Steven Smith's of the world being critical of Shohei's lack of english mastery, I say "Sayonara"
