WATCHING Shohei Ohtani strike out 10 Milwaukee Brewers and belt three home runs in the game to send the Los Angeles Dodgers back to the World series was breathtaking. For me, the greatest individual performance in Major League Baseball history. And I have been a fan of the game since 1976; watching on television or live in the ballpark.
What I love about Ohtani is how he is smashing conventional thinking that has been the norm for so long-that one can be effective as a two-way player. Maybe Ohtani is a generational talent as there aren’t many who both hit and pitch. But this should change.
And there’s Nikola Jokic of Serbia and the Denver Nuggets who is the best player in the National Basketball Association. While Jokic is not doing anything new because European big men have been doing this since the 1980s, the fact that he is totally dominating the National Basketball Association (NBA) is incredible.
Like Ohtani, Jokic is a two-way player on offense and defense. He is the first player in NBA history to finish in the top three of scoring, rebounding, and assists in a single season.
Before Ohtani and Jokic, some athletes challenging the norm were two-sport stars such as Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders. Both played in Major League baseball (MLB) and the National Football League (NFL).
Sanders accomplished it in the same season. More than that, as a member of the New York Yankees, he hit an inside-the-park homerun on September 5, 1989, against the Seattle Mariners then five days later, scored on a 68-yard punt return touchdown (after nearly being brought down) in his Atlanta Falcons debut against the Los Angeles Rams! During that play, Sanders dropped the ball and evaded three tackles. That was an example why he is nicknamed, ‘Prime Time.’
However, it should be noted that Sanders was cut after that and went on to sign with Atlanta. Then Yankees General Manager Gene Michaels said that Sanders’ NFL aspirations were affecting his baseball game.
While that season was a wash out with the Yankees, generally, Sanders did have quite a career .
On a similar note, Deion also played in the World Series and the Super Bowl (including winning back-to-back titles with two different teams).
I thought then that it would be one of the more amazing feats I’d see in my lifetime until Ohtani and Jokic came along.
In five seasons playing pro baseball in Japan, Ohtani posted a 42-17 pitching record. Over at MLB, he has been very good with a 39-20 record.
Batting wise, you simply cannot compare with a .282 BA, and .582 slugging average. In eight seasons in MLB, he has hit for 280 home runs as opposed to the 48 he knocked out in Japan. Yes, he was younger then and is only getting better. And he is only 31 years old.
It is the same thing with Jokic.
While playing for two professional seasons in Serbia with Mega Basket, he averaged 13.4 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game.
Over at the NBA, in 10 seasons with the Denver Nuggets, the 30-year old is averaging 21.8 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 7.2 assists in 745 games. During the play-offs, the numbers are even higher-27.4 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 7.6 assists.
He’s only 30 years old and his personal achievements in the NBA are already incredible. It’s simply too many to list here. Let’s just wait until he hangs up his sneakers.
I may not be a Dodgers or Nuggets fan but I follow both Ohtani and Jokic. I love that they are smashing records and changing the norms of the game. By the time they are done, who knows if they will be in their respective GOAT conversations? I, we, are lucky to watch them in our lifetime.