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National League MVP Shohei Ohtani Made Even More History in World Series Season

We know that Ohtani went 50-50, but apparently that wasn't enough history for him in 2024.

Brady Farkas

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way player Shohei Ohtani (17) celebrates in the locker room after the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the New York Yankees in game four to win the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium.
Los Angeles Dodgers two-way player Shohei Ohtani (17) celebrates in the locker room after the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the New York Yankees in game four to win the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
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Shohei Ohtani did some absolutely incredible things in 2024. This much is obvious. He became the first player to have a $700 million contract, then became the first player to have a 50-homer, 50 stolen base season, and then helped lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to their first World Series title since 2020.

However, if that wasn't enough for you, he also did several other historic things. Ohtani became the all-time Major League home run leader among Japanese players, passing Hideki Matsui, and he set the mark for most steals in a season by a Japanese player, passing Ichiro. And there's also this, from Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

players with at least 1 season with at least 50 SB AND 1 season with 200 pitching strikeouts:

Shohei Ohtani
John Ward

Ward did so before both the mound was moved to its current distance (1893) and the modern SB rule was adopted (1898)

In addition to his record-setting speed and power, the 30-year-old Ohtani hit .310 en route to capturing his third MVP Award. It was his first MVP Award in the National League, as he became the second player (Frank Robinson) to win the MVP Award in both leagues.

Because he was recuperating from an elbow injury, Ohtani couldn't even pitch in 2024. He should be fully healthy in 2025 and will return to the mound, although he might be a little delayed in that endeavor.

Ohtani tore his labrum (left) in the World Series, and might be set back a little in his mound work, but the Dodgers don't need to rush him, as they are loaded with a stable of arms after signing Blake Snell this offseason.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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