Shohei Ohtani vs. Michael Jordan: Can Dodgers' Star Make a Similar Impact in Baseball?

The comparison is a pretty interesting one...

Michael Jordan and Shohei Ohtani have a lot in common. 

Jordan was the global face of basketball (and in some aspects still is). Ohtani is the current global face of baseball at this current time. Both are 'unicorns' in the best sense possible -- where people are literally in awe of their abilities on the basketball court/the baseball diamond. 

Comparatively speaking there's one considerable facet separating both at this given time: Winning at the highest level. Jordan has six NBA Championships. Ohtani has yet to sniff a World Series ring. 

However, according to Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, there's a world in which Ohtani can reach those heights. 

Dave Roberts on if Shohei Ohtani could have a Michael Jordan-like impact on MLB:

"As far as talent certainly. As an athlete, the guys that get the legacies are the guys that win multiple championships, & Shohei signed here to win multiple championships. That's his only goal." pic.twitter.com/32b2ZtxW9h

— Doug McKain (@DMAC_LA) March 16, 2024

When speaking with Dodgers Nation's Doug McKain from Seoul, Roberts spoke about the comparison between Ohtani and Jordan. 

As echoed by the skipper, the natural progression for Ohtani is to succeed at the highest level. This ultimately means winning multiple World Series titles as a member of the franchise. 

“The word ‘legacy’ is what a lot of people talk about. As an athlete, the guys that get the legacies are guys that win multiple championships. Shohei, I don’t think he’s been in the postseason, and so he signed on here to win a championship — and multiple championships. That’s his only goal. You’ve got to do that seven times over to start talking about Michael Jordan, but you’ve got to start somewhere. That’s our hope. That’s our goal.”

— Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, 

via Doug McKain of Dodgers Nation

There's no reason to think Ohtani won't rise to the occasion when it matters most. We saw a stunning performance during the World Baseball Classic final versus the United States. The Dodgers will surely provide him with a host of postseason opportunities. 

With that said, his time in Los Angeles will be measured by the amount of titles he can bring to the city. Whether that's fair or not is another debate -- though it's essentially the reality of the situation when you're the best player in any given sport on the planet.