Days in the past, Baseball Corridor of Famer David Ortiz publicly acknowledged that he didn’t consider Shohei Ohtani ought to win this 12 months’s Nationwide League MVP award over Francisco Lindor of the New York Mets.
Now, a former Dodgers outfielder and Gold Glove winner has come ahead and declared his assist of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ major designated hitter within the MVP race.
“I’m gonna need to take Ohtani,” Andruw Jones stated on Foul Territory:
Jones completed his taking part in profession in Japan and caught glimpses of Ohtani’s greatness early on.
“What he’s doing, he’s a freak of nature,” stated Jones. “I noticed this child at 18, 19 years outdated and I knew what sort of participant he was. He didn’t stand out a lot as a hitter but, however defensively, as an outfielder, he was very, superb. I’d exit after batting observe, once they have been taking infield, simply to see him throw. He was that spectacular.”
Jones noticed Ortiz’s remark. Whereas Ortiz “had nice years” as a chosen hitter, what Ohtani is doing is “unbelievable,” he stated.
Solely two gamers in MLB historical past have hit 50 homers and stolen 50 bases in any season. Barry Bonds stole 52 bases for Pittsburgh in 1990 and hit a file 73 homers for San Francisco in 2001. Brady Anderson had 53 steals in 1992 and 50 dwelling runs 4 years later with Baltimore. No participant had performed each in the identical season till Ohtani reached 51-51 on Thursday.
Jones didn’t even come near a 50-50 season. He proudly put protection first throughout a profession that received him 10 Gold Gloves within the outfield.
“I needed to save lots of runs,” stated Jones, who hit 51 homers for Atlanta in 2005. “At my younger age, I stole 20 yearly, mainly. However the older you get, it’s like, ought to I proceed stealing or save my legs to run down fly balls in heart subject? My crew counted on me for that.”
From the place Ohtani started his profession with Jones admiring him from afar to now, he simply continues to impress.
“He is a good outfielder. He’s spectacular. I noticed him and I used to be like, he’s an awesome participant. He’s acquired all of the instruments. He’s tall, pace was there on a regular basis. His bat was shaky and I used to be like, ‘Man, perhaps this man would simply need to stick to pitching. However he modified it. He made the adjustment and we’ve seen it,” Jones added.
Photograph Credit score: Jordan Godfree-Imagn Photographs
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