UNDATED (AP) — Shohei Ohtani’s two-way All-Star season with the Los Angeles Angels was so unprecedented that Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred presented a special award to recognize it.
Ohtani was given the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award before Game 1 of the World Series. Ohtani had 46 home runs, 100 RBIs and 26 stolen bases this season, his fourth in the majors after playing in his native Japan. He was 9-2 with a 3.18 ERA while striking out 156 batters in 23 pitching starts. Those numbers made him the most accomplished two-way player since Babe Ruth, who last pitched regularly in 1919.
In other MLB news:
Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred exchanged a handshake with players’ union head Tony Clark on the field before the World Series opener and expressed optimism about reaching an agreement before the current deal expires Dec. 1 but did not detail any progress in talks that appear headed to a lockout. There is no evidence of progress toward an agreement.
