Wow! Did you see THAT???!!!

 

Last night, Shohei Ohtani gunned down the potential winning run at second base, in the top of the ninth inning, throwing a bullet all the way from deep right field.

Oh, wait! That was Aaron Judge.  In Yankee Stadium.

Since it wasn't time for his once-a-week start last night, the "incomparable," "greatest player what ever was," sat on the bench when he wasn't batting. Just as he does every night between his occasional appearances on the mound.

This year: all of 148 innings pitched, or almost 6 innings a start!

No, I'm still not giving this up.

Five years into his major-league career, The Greatest STILL has yet to record a single chance in the outfield—or anywhere else, save for on the mound. 

In all, Ohtani has played 8 1/3 innings in the outfield—or less than the equivalent of one full game. All of these innings came in the 2021 season.

And somehow, in that time, Ohtani did not get to handle a single chance.

No putouts, no assists, no errors.

The fact remains: Ohtani is NOT a "two-way player."

He is simply a pitcher who can hit, someone who could not have existed in this role before the designated hitter rule.

I have nothing against the DH. Or Ohtani, a splendid ballplayer, and seemingly a modest and pleasant individual.

But he's not the greatest player who ever lived.

And he should not be the 2022 AL MVP.