AngelsWin Today: Shohei Ohtani wins 2023 American League MVP Award - First player all-time to win multiple MVP Awards unanimously

[AngelsWin.com]

ANAHEIM – RHP/DH Shohei Ohtani today was named the 2023 American League Most Valuable Player
in an announcement made by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA). It marks the second
A.L. MVP award for Ohtani, who joins Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera as the only foreign-born players to
win multiple MVP Awards. Ohtani was also the 2016 Most Valuable Player in Nippon Professional Baseball’s
Pacific League.

Ohtani earned all 30 first place votes for a total of 420 points in the balloting process, 156 points
ahead of second place finisher Corey Seager of the Texas Rangers (264 points). Ohtani, who also won the
2021 A.L. MVP Award in unanimous fashion, is the 20th unanimous BBWAA MVP Award winner and the first
to do so multiple times. The Angels are the first team to have three unanimous MVP Awards (Mike Trout was
a unanimous winner in 2014).

As a hitter, Ohtani led the American League in home runs (44), on-base percentage (.412), slugging
percentage (.654), OPS (1.066), extra-base hits (78) and total bases (325) in 2023. He became the second
player in Angels history to lead the league in home runs, joining Troy Glaus (led A.L. with 47 HR in 2000), and
was the only player in the Majors with 5+ triples and 35+ home runs. Ohtani also ranked among A.L. leaders
in intentional walks (21; 2nd), triples (8; 3rd), batting average (.304; 4th), runs (102; T-4th), and walks (91;
5th).

As a pitcher, he led the A.L. (min. 130 IP) with a .184 (85/463) opponent batting average and finished
the year with a 10-5 record, a 3.14 ERA (132 IP – 46 ER) and 167 strikeouts across 23 starts. Ohtani allowed
one-or-fewer earned runs in 13 of 23 starts, pitched his first career shutout on July 27 at Detroit and finished
the year with an active streak of 20.2 consecutive innings pitched without allowing an earned run.
For a third consecutive season, Ohtani was selected to the All-Star Game as both a pitcher and position
player and was the American League’s leading vote-getter in Phase 1 of fan voting. He joined David Ortiz
(2011-13) as the only players to receive three straight All-Star fan elections at designated hitter.
The 29-year-old captures the Angels seventh MVP award in franchise history, following Don Baylor
(1979), Vladimir Guerrero (2004), Mike Trout (2014, 2016 & 2019) and Ohtani’s first award in 2021. The
Angels are the first team to win five MVP awards in a 10-year span since San Francisco won five straight with
Jeff Kent (2000) and Barry Bonds (2001-04) and the first A.L. team since the Yankees won eight from 1954-
63 with Yogi Berra (1954-55), Mickey Mantle (1956-57, ’62), Roger Maris (1960-61) and Elston Howard
(1963).

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[angelsfan100]

[PattyD22]

I used to tell my kids whenever we were at The Big A and we would look over to Mike Trout and I’d say, “kids, always remember that you got to watch one of the greatest players to ever play the game of baseball.”

Never in my life would I think I’d ever be able to watch someone raise the bar higher than Trout, but saying that I got to watch Shohei Ohtani play for many years live, is something I’ll always look back on and cherish.  Like people who watched Ted Williams and Willie Mays did, except Ohtani did things not even those players could do.

I hope he stays, but if he doesn’t, others will be able to say they saw him play in person also.

[Duren, Duren]

I saw many HOF players in person in  the seventies and eighties. Including the 1982 all star game. Retrospect adds additional respect. But at the time many were 'enemies' hurting your favorite team. I especially think of the seventies Reds, late seventies/early eighties Pirates, Phillies, Dodgers. In retrospect you look back comparatively and recognize how good those teams and players were. With multi HOF players. 

The Expos team that I saw hundreds of times in person had HOF players Carter, Dawson, Raines in their prime on the same team for multiple years. Plus under rated ace Steve Rogers, closer Jeff Reardon, Batting champion Al Oliver, amongst others over about a five year span. And Dick Williams managing some of those seasons.   But like the Angels with Pujols, Trout, Ohtani couldn't translate it into post season success. 

The wild card would have been huge multiple times, but wasn't around.

Sadly, Ohtani is now reluctantly in the rear view mirror for me. I was glad that I saw him in person a few times. Along with Trout and Pujols. In time they will stand out historically as the individual stars they were career wise. . Pujols has his championships pre Angels. Ohtani possibly post Angels. Trout? Another Ernie Banks type storyline?  Or vindication in his later years? We shall see.

[Chuck]

[FromJapan]

The Japanese Prime Minister was in the United States when Ohtani won the AL MVP, so the Chief Cabinet Secretary expressed his congratulations on his behalf.

"He achieved the great feat of naming the MVP for the second time. I'm very happy about the really uplifting news. I would like to express my heartfelt respect for his exceptional performance in both pitching and batting."